GIFT  OF 


y.s: 

LAWS  RELATING  TO 

Gas,  Electric  Light,  Telegrapht  and  Telephone 

Companies  and  the  Electric  Equipment 

of  Street  Railway  Companies  in 

the  District  of  Columbia 


Compiled  by  WALTER  C  ALLEN,  Electrical  Engineer,  D.  C 


PRINTED  FOR  USE  OF  THE  COMMITTEE 

ON  THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA, 

HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1908 


o 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


American  Railway  Appliance  Exhibition:  Page. 
Resolution  granting  temporary  occupancy  of  part  of  Government  Reserva- 
tion for,  and  the  use  of  steam  and  electric  power 54 

Anacostia  Bridge: 

Act  for  reconstruction  of,  and  reciprocal  trackage 52 

Act  relative  to  method  of  crossing,  by  Anacostia  and  Potomac  River  Rail- 
road Company 64 

Lamps,  relative  to  cost  and  candlepower 64 

Anacostia  and  Potomac  River  Railroad  Company: 

Act  for  reconstruction  of  Anacostia  Bridge  and  reciprocal  trackage 52 

Act  relative  to  method  of  crossing  Anacostia  Bridge 64 

Anacostia,  Surrattsville  and  Brandywine  Electric  Railway  Company: 

Act  authorizing  extension  in  the  District  of  Columbia 58 

Aqueduct  Bridge: 

Act  authorizing  connection  with  wires  by  Postal  Telegraph  Company 39 

Authorizing  single  track  across 48 

Baltimore  and  Washington  Transit  Company : 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operating 32 

Pipes,  liability  for  damage  to 32 

Belt  Railway  Company: 

Underground  system  authorized 37 

Brightwood  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operation 17 

Extract  from  act  amending  charter — Method  of  operating 25 

Act  amending  charter  of,  permitting  use  of  overhead  wires 23 

Cables: 

For  removing  of  lines  from  roof  of  Treasury  Department 65 

Capitol  Building: 

Limiting  cost  of  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant 66 

Capital  Railway  Company: 

To  maintain  lights  along  line  of,  but  overhead  wires  not  permitted  within 

city  limits 29 

Method  of  operation 29 

Authorizing  underground  system 30 

Navy-yard  Bridge,  method  of  operating  across 30 

Authorized  to  install  underground  system 36 

Navy-yard  Bridge,  authority  to  install  double  overhead  system 36 

Chain  Bridge: 

To  be  lighted  by  Washington  and  Great  Falls  Railway  Company 24 

Chesapeake  and  Potomac  Telephone  Company: 

Authorize  temporary  extension  of  overhead  wires  for  American  Railway 

Appliance  Exhibition 54 

City  and  Suburban  Railway  Company: 

Resolution  to  promote  relocation  of  certain  tracks  of ". .         41 

Conduits: 

Act  legalizing  house  connections  in  city  houses 39 

Act  authorizing  permits,  reservation  of  ducts,  and  rates  chargeable  to  con- 
sumers          41 

Plans  to  be  submitted  with  applications '   44 

Subject  to  regulations 45 

Penalty  for  tampering,  etc.,  with f  46 

Act  permitting  Potomac  Electric  Power  Company  to  connect  with  Wash- 
ington Railway  and  Electric  Company 51 

329266 


IV 

Conduits,  private:  Page. 

Act  regulating  permits  for 41 

Authorize  laying  of,  by  S.  Kann's  Sons  Co 57 

Authorize  laying  of,  by  Washington  Market  Company 58 

Congressional  Library  building: 

Limiting  cost  of  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant 66 

Convention  Hall: 

Authorizing  temporary  electric-light  wires  in  existing  conduits 43 

Discounts  on  bills: 

Authority  to  Washington  Gas  Light  Company  to  increase  rate  of  (sec.  10). .          9 

District  of  Columbia: 

To  be  furnished  with  gas  (sec.  12) 13 

District  of  Columbia  and  Suburban  Railway  Company: 

Authorizing  underground  construction 22 

East  Washington  Heights  Traction  Railroad  Company: 

Authority  to  erect  and  maintain  buildings  for  operative  purposes 37 

Methods  of  operating 37 

Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — method  of  operation 15 

Authorized  underground  service  on  New  York  avenue,  Fifth  to  Fifteenth 

streets 18 

Authorizing  underground  electric  construction 22,  38 

Termination  of  construction  of 19 

Authorized  overhead  wires  on  North  Capitol  street  branch 18 

Act  amending  charter  relative  to  use  of  overhead  wires 25 

Cost  of  underground  construction  to  be  borne  by  railway  company 33 

Electric  companies: 

Annual  report  required 43 

Electric  lighting: 

Extract  from  act  for,  in  one  or  more  principal  streets  (1888) 15 

Authorized  on  principal  thoroughfares  of  city  (1889) 15 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1890) 18 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1891) 19 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  for  three  years  from  July  1, 

1891 21 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  (1893) 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1894) 26 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1895) 28 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1896) 29 

Authorized  on  principal  streets  and  avenues  (1897) 34 

Electric  lighting  wires  west  of  Rock  Creek : 

Authorizing  permits  for  extension  of  overhead  wires  outside  fire  limits  and 
west  of  Rock  Creek 40 

Electric  arc  lighting: 

Extract  from  act  relative  to  service  (1896) 33 

.     Extract  from  act  relative  to  service  (1899) 38 

Extract  from  act  relative  to  service  (1900) 39 

Extract  from  act  relative  to  service  (1902) 47 

Executive  Mansion: 

For  electric  lamps  and  wires 

Electric  lights,  grounds  south  of 34 

Fire-alarm  telegraph: 

Extension  of,  authorized. 35 

Franklin  Park: 

Electric  lights  in. . . . .- 34 

Gas: 

Regulating  standard  of 10 

Test  of,  companies  furnishing,  may  be  represented  (sec.  4) 11 

Inspections  of,  to  be  reported  (sec.  11) 11 

Illuminating  power  to  be  stated  on  bills  (sec.  6) 

Price  for  furnishing,  to  be  uniform  (sec.  16) .* 13 

Act  relating  to  sale  of,  and  regulating  price  by  Washington  Gaslight  Com- 
pany         30 

Act  relating  to  sale  of,  and  regulating  price  by  Georgetown  Gaslight  Com- 
pany  

Act  relating  to  illuminating  power  of 31 

Establishing  candlepower  of 47, 48 

Act  regulating  candlepower  of 51 


Gas  or  oil  lighting: 

Authority  as  to  duration  of  contracts 65,  67 

Gas  bills: 

Rate  of  discount  (sec.  11) 12 

Rate  of  increase  due  to  price  of  coal  (sec.  11) 12 

Gas  companies: 

Penalties  for  injuring  or  defrauding  (sec.  15) 13 

Annual  report  required 43 

Gas  laboratory: 

For  inspector  to  be  provided  by  Washington  Gaslight  Company  (sec.  3) ...        10 
How  paid  for  (sec.  3) 11 

Gas  works: 

Act  regulating 10 

Congress  may  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  act  regulating  (sec.  14) 13 

Authorizing  additional  testing  laboratories  by  the  Washington  Gaslight 

Company 26 

Authorizing  testing  laboratory  by  the  Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company 26 

Georgetown  Barge,  Dock,  Elevator  and  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operation 17 

Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company: 

Act  incorporating  (1854)  (sec.  1) .' 5 

Capital  stock  (sec.  2) 6 

Officers  and  directors,  term  (sec.  3) 6 

Capital  stock,  officers  and  directors  authorized  to  manage  (sec.  3) 6 

Directors  of,  of  office,  and  method  of  election  (sec.  4) 6 

Directors  of,  failure  to  elect  on  day  specified  (sec.  5) 6 

Capital  stock,  payments  of  subscription  (sec.  6) 

Gas,  authority  to  make  and  sell  (sec.  7) 7 

Gas  to  be  made  from  various  substances  (sec.  7) 7 

Gas  pipes,  authority  to  lay  in  streets,  avenues,  and  alleys  (sec.  7) 7 

Buildings,  authority  to  erect  (sec.  7) 7 

Appurtenances,  penalty  for  damage  to  (sec.  8) 7 

Congress  may  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  act  (sec.  9) 7 

Gas,  authority  to  others  to  engage  in  manufacture  and  sale  (sec.  9) 7 

Money,  not  authorized  to  issue  promises  to  pay,  and  penalty  for  procedure 

(sec  10) 7 

Stockholders'  liability  (sec.  11) 7 

Act  incorporating  (1848)  Washington  Gas  Light  Company — To  lay  pipes 

in  Georgetown  repealed  (sec.  12) 8 

Act  extending  works  of 10 

Authorize  testing  laboratory 26 

Act  relating  to  sale  and  price  of  gas 31 

Limitation  of  issue  of  stock 32 

Georgetown  and  Tenallytown  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operation 16 

Government  electric  plants: 

Authorize  report  of  cost  of  electric  light  and  power  produced 50 

Grand  Army  of  the  Republic: 

Authority  for  erection  of  overhead  system  during  encampment 23 

Authority  to  permit  wires  to  be  stretched  for  purposes  of  illumination  of 

parks  or  reservations 46 

Heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant: 

Limiting  cost  of,  for  House  of  Representatives  building,  Capitol  building, 
Congressional  Library  building,  and  United  States  Senate  building 65 

House  connections  with  conduits: 

Authorizing  permits  issued 35 

House  of  Representatives: 

Authority  to  string  wires  to  Government  Printing  Office 36 

Act  relating  to  construction  of  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant  for 52 

Limiting  cost  of  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant 66 

Inaugural  ceremonies: 

Authority  to  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  and  United  States  Elec- 
tric Lighting  Company  to  extend  overhead  wires  to  Pension  building 25 

Inspector  of  gas  and  meters: 

Authorized  (sec.  2) - 10 

Bonds  of  (sec.  10) 12 

Internal-revenue  tax: 

Washington  Gas  Light  Company  not  relieved  from  (sec.  5) 9 


VI 

Judiciary  Park: 

Electric  lights  in 34 

S.  Kami's  Sons  &  Co.: 

Authorize  laying  of  conduit , . .        57 

Laboratory: 

Cost  of  maintaining,  to  be  paid  for  by  Washington  Gas  Light  Company. . .        33 
Lafayette  Park: 

Electric  lights  in 34 

Lamps: 

To  be  lighted  by  Washington  Gas  Light  Company,  and  price  for  same 14 

Lamp  posts  with  lamps: 

Authority  to  Commissioners  to  erect  light  and  maintain,  outside  city 

limits 14 

Lamps  and  lamp-posts: 

For  lighting,  extinguishing,  repairing,  etc,  on  avenues,  streets,  etc.,  price 

not  to  exceed  $20.00  per  annum  per  lamp 14 

Lamps  and  wires: 

In  Executive  Mansion 21 

Lighting:  . 

Act  making  appropriations  for,  fiscal  year  1907 66 

Act  making  appropriations  for,  fiscal  year  1908 67 

Lighting  Potomac  Park  driveway: 

Act  making  appropriations  for,  fiscal  year  June  30,  1907 67 

Lincoln  Park: 

Electric  lights  in 34 

Long  Bridge: 

Authorizing  underground  construction  across,  by  Washington,  Alexandria 

and  Mount  Vernon  Railway  Company 43 

Manholes: 

Subject  to  regulations 45 

Maryland  and  Washington  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operating 24 

Gas  and  meters: 

Inspector  of,  authorized  (sec.  2) 10 

Gas  meters: 

Testing  of  (sec.  7) 

Testing  of,  on  request  of  consumer  and  payment  of  fee  (sec.  8) 

To  be  brought  to  laboratory  by  company  (sec.  9) 

Authorize  inspections  of 

Penalty  for  placing  those  not  inspected 31 

Metropolitan  Railroad  Company: 

Act  extending  time  for  changing  motive  power 

Authorized  to  change  motive  power 28 

Municipal  authorities: 

Resolution  relative  to  failure  to  light  streets 

Authorized  to  levy  and  collect  tax  for  street  lighting  (sec.  1) 

Authorize  contract  with  Washington  Gaslight  Company  for    street    light- 
ing (sec.  2) m 

Street  lamps,  authority  to  increase  number  of — 

Secretary  of  the  Interior  authorized,  upon  failure  of  municipal  authorities, 

to  levy  and  collect  tax  (sec.  4) 9 

Navy- Yard  Bridge: 

Method  of  operating  across,  by  Capital  Railway  Company 

Authority  to  Capital  Railway  Company  to  install  double  overhead  system.        36 
Pension  building: 

Authority  to  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  and  United  States  Elec- 
tric Light  Company  to  extend  wires  for  inaugural  ceremonies 25 

Permission  to  string  overhead  wires  by  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany and  Postal  Telegraph  Company 57 

Pipes: 

To  be  laid  or  replaced  in  streets  to  be  improved 

Liability  for  damage  to,  by  WTashington,  Alexandria  and  Mount  Vernon 
Railway  Company 

Liability  for  damages  to,  Baltimore  and  Washington  Transit  Company 32 

Poles  in  alleys: 

Authorizing  erection  and  maintenance  of 

Poles  and  wires  in  alleys: 

Authority  to  maintain,  with  repairs  and  renewals  as  may  be  necessary 45 


Vll 

Poles  and  wires:  Page. 

Penalty  for  nonremoyal  of 44 

Poles  and  wires,  elimination  of  grade  crossings: 

Act  authorizing  permits  for  the  erection  and  stringing  of 4& 

Postal  Telegraph  Company: 

Act  authorizing  connection  with  wires  on  Aqueduct  Bridge 39 

Authorize  temporary  extension  of  overhead  wires  for  American  Railway 
Appliance  Exhibition 54 

Grant  permission  to  extend  wires  to  Pension  building 57 

Potomac  Electric  Power  Company: 

Limitation  of  overhead  wires 3& 

Act  permitting  conduit  connections  with  Washington  Railway  and  Elec- 
tric Company 51 

Potomac  Park  driveway: 

Act  making  appropriation  for  lighting,  fiscal  year  June  30,  1907 67 

Power  house  for  public  buildings: 

Act  relating  to  preparation  of  plane  and  estimates  for  a  power  house,  with 

distributing  mains  for  heat,  steam,  and  electric  power 53 

President  of  United  States: 

To  appoint  board  relative  to  underground  constructions 19 

Public  Printer: 

Authorized  one  6-pin  arm  on  each  of  11  poles,  North  Capitol  between  G  and 

B  streets,  and  to  string  wires 36> 

Rock  Creek  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — method  of  operation 15 

Use  of  overhead  wires  not  authorized  within  city  limits 19 

Railroad  companies,  steam: 

To  provide  for  lighting  of  streets,  etc. ,  where  tracks  are  laid 14 

Shall  pay  District  of  Columbia  for  lighting  streets,  etc.,  where  tracks  are 

laid 14 

Railroad  companies: 

May  sell  stock  to  amount  necessary  to  cover  cost  of  change  of  motive  power.         20 

To  forfeit  franchise  for  failure  to  change  motive  power  within  two  years —        21 

Extract  from  act  compelling  removal  of  tracks 37 

Secretary  of  the  Interior: 

Authorized  upon  failure  of  municipal  authorities  to  levy  and  collect  tax. .       9-4 

To  be  furnished  with  copies  of  coal  contracts  (sec.  11) 12: 

Authorized  to  grant  permit  for  use  of  Pension  building  for  inaugural1 

ceremonies 55- 

Secretary  of  Treasury: 

To  pass  on  cost  of  electric  currents  for  executive  or  municipal  buildings 7ft 

Secretary  of  War: 

Authorized  to  grant  permits  for  use  of  parks  and  reservations 55- 

Subways: 

Subject  to  regulations. 45- 

Subway  system: 

For  construction  of,  to  connect  Senate  building  with  Capitol 6& 

Taxation  on  personal  property: 

Rates  of  taxation  to  corporations 47 

Telephones: 

Authorize  report  relative  to  charges  for  use  of 34 

Act  regulating  rate  for  use  of . . .    39 

Act  regulating  rates  for  service 51 

Telegraph  and  telephone  service: 

Authorized  underground  construction,  1888 Ifr 

Authorized  on  streets,  alleys,  etc. ,  1889 18. 

The  President  of  United  States  to  appoint  board  relative  to  underground 
constructions 19> 

Authorized  on  streets,  alleys,  etc. ,  1890 • 19» 

Act  relative  to  length  of  conduits 22. 

Authorize  erection  of,  on  streets,  etc.,  1894 2& 

Telephone  wires: 

Act  regulating  use  and  removal  in  certain  sections  of  city 43; 

Tracks,  railroad: 

Extract  from  act  compelling  removal  of 37 

Treasury  Department  building: 

For  removing  cables  of  lines  from  roof  of . . .' 5$ 


VIII 

United  States  Electric  Company.  Page- 
Authority  to  extend  overhead  wires  to  Pension  building  for  inaugural  cere- 
monies         25 

Authority  to  extend  underground  conduits  and  wires 34 

Underground  construction: 

President  of  United  States  to  appoint  board  relative  to 19 

Underground  electric  system: 

Authorizing  extension  to  street  railroad  companies  to  install  underground 
systems 40 

United  States  Senate: 

Authority  to  string  wires  to  Government  Printing  Office 36 

United  States  Senate  building: 

Subway  system,  construction  of,  connecting  with  Capitol 66 

Limiting  cost  of  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant 66 

Washington  and  Arlington  Railway  Company: 

Extract  from  act  incorporating — Method  of  operation 21 

Washington,  Alexandria  and  Mount  Vernon  Railway  Company: 

'  Authorize  underground  construction 28 

Pipes,  liability  for  damage  to,  and  other  underground  constructions 28 

Overhead  wires  in  city  limits  not  authorized 29 

Authorizing  underground  construction  across  Long  Bridge 43 

Washington  Gas  Light  Company: 

Act  incorporating  (1848) 

Capital  stock 3-2 

Term  of  officers  and  election  of  (sec.  3) \ 3 

Directors  of  (sec.  4) 4 

Directors,  failure  to  elect  on  day  specified  (sec.  5) 4 

.    Capital  stock,  payment  of  subscriptions  (sec.  6) 4 

Gas,  authority  to  make  and  sell  (sec.  7) 4 

Gas,  to  be  made  from  various  substances  (sec.  7) 

Gas  pipes,  authority  to  lay,  in  streets,  avenues,  and  alleys  (sec.  7) 4 

Buildings,  authority  to  erect  (sec.  7) 4 

Appurtenances,  penalty  for  damages  to  (sec.  8) 4 

Act  amending  charter,  embracing  territory  of  Georgetown  (sec.  1) 5 

Money,  not  authorized  to  issue  promises  to  pay,  and  penalty  for  such  pro- 
cedure (sec.  9) 5 

Congress  may  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  act  to  engage  in  manufacture  and  sale 

(sec.  9)..! 5 

Stockholders,  liabilities  of  (sec.  11) 5 

Capital  stock,  act  authorizing  increase  of  (1855)  (sec.  1) 

Act  amending  charter  relative  to  annual  meeting  (sec.  1) 

Capital  stock,  act  authorizing  increase  of  $500,000  (sec.  2) 

Capital  stock  in  shares  of  $20  (sec.  2) 

Act  increasing  capital  stock  and  extending  works  (sec.  1) 9 

Capital  stock,  act  increasing  and  extending  works  (sec.  1) 9 

Municipal  authorities,  authorized  to  make  contract  for  street  lights  (sec.  2) . 

Internal-revenue  tax,  not  relieved  from  (sec.  5) 

Discounts  for  prompt  payments,  authority  to  increase  rate  of  (sec.  10) 

Gas  laboratory  for  inspector  to  be  provided  (sec.  3) 10 

Gas,  rate  for  furnishing  United  States  Government  and  individual  con- 
sumers (sec. 11) 

Furnish  Secretary  of  the  Interior  with  copies  of  coal  contracts  (sec.  11)  ... 

Gas  to  be  furnished,  District  of  Columbia  (sec. 12) 

Maintain  street  lamps  and  price  (sec.  12) 

Gas,  may  stop  supply  to  consumers  for  nonpayment  of  bills  (sec.  13) 

Congress  may  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  act  regulating  gas  works  (sec.  14) 

To  light  city  lamps  and  price 

Authorize  additional  testing  laboratories  by 

Act  relating  to  sale  and  price  of  gas ." 

Limitation  of  issue  of  stock 

Laboratory,  cost  of  maintaining,  to  be  paid  for  by 33 

Washington  Home  for  Incurables: 

Act  providing  for  lighting  and  power  purposes 70 

Washington  and  Gettysburg  Railway  Company: 

Authorizing  motive  power -        40 

Telegraph  and  telephone  lines,  authority  to  install,  along  line  of 41 


IX 

Washington  and  Glen  Echo  Railroad  Company:  Page. 

Authorizing  changing  of  motive  power 36 

Washington  and  Great  Falls  Railway  Company: 

Electric  lights,  shall  operate  and  maintain  along  route 24 

Electric  lights  on  Cham  Bridge 24 

Act  authorizing  use  of  overhead  lines 24 

Amending  act  relative  to  method  of  operating  lines 30 

Washington  Market  Company: 

Authorize  laying  of  conduit  for 58 

Washington  and  Marlboro  Electric  Railroad  Company: 

Authorizing  method  of  operation 29 

To  maintain  lights  along  line  of,  but  overhead  wires  not  permitted  within 
city  limits 29 

Washington  Railway  and  Electric  Company: 

A.ct  permitting  conduit  connections  with  Potomac  Electric  Power  Company        51 

Washington  and  University  Railroad  Company: 

Authorizing  motive  power  for 39 

Washington,  Spa  Spring  and  Gretta  Railroad  Company: 

Act  authorizing  extension  of  street  railway  into  District  of  Columbia 70 

Telegraph  and  telephone  lines,  authority  to  construct,  along  lines  Wash- 
ington, Spa  Spring  and  Gretta  Railroad 72 

Western  Union  Telegraph  Company: 

Authority  to  extend  overhead  wires  to  Pension  building  for  inaugural  cere- 
monies          25 

Authorize  temporary  extension  of  overhead  wires  for  American  Railway 

Appliance  Exhibition 54 

Grant  permission  to  extend  wires  to  Pension  building 57 

Wires,  overhead: 

Use  of,  not  permitted  in  city  limits 21 

Act  legalizing  house  connections  outside  fire  limits 39 

Subject  to  regulations 45 

Grant  permission  to  extend  to  Pension  building 56 

Temporary  use  of,  in  connection  with  elimination  of  grade  crossings 48 

Wires,  Telegraph: 

Act  regulating  use  of 62 

Wiring,  electric: 

Act  to  regulate 49 


AN  ACT  To  incorporate  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company,  approved  July  8, 

1848. 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  John  F.  Cal- 
lan,  Jacob  Bigelow,  B.  B.  French,  W.  H.  Harover,  M.  P.  Callan,  W. 
A.  Bradley,  and  W.  H.  English,  and  their  present  and  future  asso- 
ciates, are  hereby  declared  to  be  a  body  politic  and  corporate,  by  the 
name  and  style  of  the  "  Washington  Gas-light  Company",  and  by  the 
same  name  shall  have  perpetual  succession  and  shall  be  able  to  sue 
and  be  sued,  plead  and  be  impleaded,  in  all  courts  of  law  and  equity 
in  the  District  of  Columbia  and  elsewhere;  and  to  make  and  have  a 
common  seal,  and  the  same  to  break,  alter  and  renew  at  pleasure ;  to 
ordain  and  establish  such  by-laws,  ordinances  and  regulations,  and 
generally  to  do  every  act  and  thing  necessary  to  carry  into  effect  this 
act,  or  to  promote  the  objects  and  design  of  this  corporation. 

SEC.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  capital  stock  of  this 
corporation  shall  not  exceed  fifty  thousand  dollars;  that  a  share  in  the 
same  shall  be  twenty  dollars;  and  books  of  subscription  to  the  said 
capital  stock,  or  to  such  portions  thereof  as  from  time  to  time  may,  by 
the  directors  for  the  time  being,  be  deemed  proper  and  necessary,  shall 
be  opened  by  the  appointment  or  under  the  direction  of  the  directors 
hereinafter  named,  subject  to  such  rules,  limitations  and  conditions 
as  by  them  shall  be  prescribed ;  and  the  stock  of  the  said  corporation 
shall  be  deemed  personal  property. 

SEC.  3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  stock,  property  and 
affairs  of  the  said  corporation  shall  be  managed  and  conducted  by  or 
under  the  direction  of  five  directors,  being  stockholders ;  that  the  said 
directors  shall  hold  their  offices  for  one  year  from  the  second  Monday, 
and  shall  be  elected  on  the  first  Monday  in  January,  in  each  year,  at 
such  time  and  place  in  the  cit}^  of  Washington  as  a  majority  of  the 
directors  for  the  time  being  shall  appoint;  and  that  notice  of  such 
election  shall  be  published  in  at  least  two  of  the  public  newspapers 
printed  in  the  city  of  Washington,  at  least  fourteen  days  previous  to 
the  time  of  holding  such  election ;  and  every  such  election  shall  be  by 
ballot,  and  by  such  of  the  stockholders  who  shall  attend  for  that  pur- 
pose, either  in  person  or  by  proxy;  and  each  stockholder  shall  be 
entitled  to  one  vote  for  each  share  of  the  stock  which  he  or  she  may 
have  held  in  his  or  her  own  name  for  at  least  fourteen  days  before  the 
time  of  voting;  and  the  persons  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes 
shall  be  the  directors:  and  if  it  shall  happen  that  two  or  more  persons 
have  an  equal  number  of  votes,  the  directors  in  office  at  the  time  of 
such  election  shall,  by  a  plurality  of  votes,  given  by  ballot,  determine 
which  of  the  persons  so  having  an  equal  number  of  votes  shall  be 
director  or  directors,  so  as  to  complete  the  whole  number  to  be  chosen ; 
24717  (3) 


and  the  directors  so  chosen  shall,  as  soon  as  may  be  thereafter,  pro- 
ceed by  ballot  to  elect  one  of  their  number  for  their  president;  and 
whenever  any  vacancy  shall  happen,  the  same  shall  be  filled  up  by 
the  remaining  directors,  by  plurality  of  votes,  until  the  next  annual 
election. 

SEC.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  John  F.  Callan,  Jacob 
Bigelow,  B.  B.  French,  W.  H.  Harover,  M.  P.  Callan,  and  W.  A. 
Bradley,  shall  be  the  first  directors  of  the  said  company,  who  shall 
hold  their  offices  until  the  second  Monday  of  January,  in  the  year  of 
our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-nine,  and  until  others 
are  chosen  in  their  places ;  and  they  shall  proceed  to  choose  their  presi- 
dent at  such  time  and  place  as  they,  or  a  majority  of  them,  shall 
determine. 

SEC.  5.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  in  case  it  shall  at  any  time 
happen  that  an  election  for  directors  shall  not  take  place  on  the  day 
appointed  by  this  act  for  that  purpose,  the  said  corporation  shall  not, 
for  that  cause,  or  for  any  nonuser,  be  deemed  to  be  dissolved,  but  it 
shall  and  may  be  lawful  to  hold  an  election  for  directors  on  any  other 
day,  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  provided  for  by  the  by-laws  of  the 
said  corporation. 

SEC.  6.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful 
for  the  directors,  or  a  majority  of  them,  to  require  payment  of  the 
subscription  to  the  capital  stock  of  the  said  corporation,  at  such  times 
and  in  such  proportions  as  they,  or  a  majority  of  them,  shall  deem  fit, 
under  the  penalty  of  forfeiting  all  previous  payment  or  payments 
thereon;  and  that  previous  notice  of  .the  instalments  required  to  be 
paid  shall  be  published  at  least  fourteen  days  in  two  of  the  public 
newspapers  printed  in  the  city  of  Washington. 

SEC.  7.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  president  and  directors 
shall  have  full  power  and  authority  to  manufacture,  make  and  sell 
gas,  to  be  made  of  coal,  oil,  tar,  peat,  pitch  or  turpentine,  or  other 
material,  and  to  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  lighting  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington, or  the  streets  thereof,  and  any  buildings,  manufactories  or 
houses  therein  contained  and  situate,  and  to  lay  pipes  for  the  purpose 
of  conducting  gas  in  any  of  the  streets,  avenues  and  alleys  of  the  said 
city;  and  also,  that  the  said  company  will  so  conduct  the  manufac- 
tories of  gas  as  not  to  injure  private  property  or  create  a  nuisance: 


prescribe:  And  provided 
further,  That  the  right  to  erect  or  put  up  any  buildings,  works  or 
apparatus  for  the  manufacture  of  gas  shall  be  subject  to  such  terms, 
conditions,  restrictions,  and  regulations  as  the  said  corporation  of 
Washington  may  or  shall,  from  time  to  time,  prescribe  or  direct. 

SEC.  8.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  if  any  person  or  persons 
shall  wilfully  do,  or  cause  to  be  done,  any  act  or  acts  whatever, 
whereby  the  works  of  said  corporation,  or  any  pipe,  conduit,  plug, 
cock,  reservoir,  or  any  engine,  machine,  or  structure,  or  any  matter  or 
thing  appertaining  to  the  same,  shall  be  stopped,  obstructed,  impaired, 
weakened,  injured  or  destroyed,  the  person  or  persons  so  offending 
shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  said  corporation  double  the  amount  of  the 
damage  sustained  by  means  ef  such  offence  or  injury,  to  be  recovered 

24757 


in  the  name  of  the  said  corporation,  with  costs  of  suit,  in  any  action 
of  debt,  to  be  brought  in  any  court  having  cognizance  thereof. 

SEC.  9.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  nothing  in  this  act  shall  be 
construed  to  prevent  any  person  or  persons,  nor  any  incorporated 
company  hereafter  to  be  created  by  Congress  for  that  purpose,  from 
engaging  in  and  pursuing  the  business  specified  in  the  seventh  section 
of  this  act ;  and  that  it  shall  be  lawful  for  Congress,  at  any  time  here- 
after, to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  this  act. 

SEC.  10.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  nothing  in  this  act  con- 
tained shall  be  construed  to  authorize  the  said  Washington  Gas-light 
Company,  to  make,  issue,  or  put  in  circulation  any  bill,  draft,  check, 
order,  promissory  note,  change  ticket,  or  anything  else  promising  or 
agreeing  to  pay  money,  intended  to  circulate  as  money  or  the  tendency 
of  which  shall  be  to  circulate  as  mone}^  or  currency ;  and  the  violation 
of  any  one  of  the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  be  a  forfeiture  of  the 
charter  herein  granted,  and  a  fine  of  fifty  dollars  against  each  of  the 
directors  voting  for  the  same. 

SEC.  11.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  each  of  the  stockholders  in 
the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  shall  be  held  liable  in  his  or  her 
individual  capacity  for  all  the  debts  and  liabilities  of  the  said  com- 
pany, however  contracted  or  incurred,  to  be  recovered  by  suit  as  other 
debts  or  liabilities,  before  the  court  or  tribunal  having  jurisdiction  of 
the  case. 

AN  ACT  To  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  Gas- 
light Company ",  approved  July  -eighth,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-eight. 
Approved  August  2,  1852  (10  Stats.,  p.  734). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  act  enti- 
tled "An  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company," 
approved  July  eighth,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-eight,  be,  and  the 
same  is  hereby  amended  by  inserting  in  the  second  section,  immedi- 
ately before  the  word  "fifty,"  the  words  "three  hundred  and  ";  and 
in  the  seventh  section,  wherever  the  word  "  Washington  "  occurs,  by 
inserting  immediately  thereafter  the  words  "  and  Georgetown  ". 

AN  ACT  To  incorporate  the  Georgetown  Gas-light  Company.  Approved  July  20, 
1854. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  David  Eng- 
lish, Robert  P.  Dodge,  Richard  Cruikshank,  William  M.  Fitzhugh, 
Richard  Pettit,  William  F.  Seymour,  Adolphus  H.  Pickrell  and  Wil- 
liam Bucknell,  and  their  present  and  future  associates,  are  hereby 
declared  to  be  a  body  politic  and  corporate,  by  the  name  and  style  of 
"  The  Georgetown  Gas-light  Company  ",  and  by  the  same  name  shall 
have  perpetual  succession  and  shall  be  able  to  sue  and  be  sued,  plead 
and  be  impleaded,  in  all  Courts  of  law  and  equity  in  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  elsewhere ;  to  make  and  have  a  common  seal,  and  the 
same  to  break,  alter,  and  renew,  at  pleasure;  to  ordain  and  establish 
by-laws,  ordinances  and  regulations,  and  generally  to  do  every  act 
and  thing  necessary  to  carry  into  effect  this  act,  or  to  promote  the 
objects  and  design  of  this  corporation. 

24757 


SEC.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  capital  stock  of  this 
corporation  shall  not  exceed  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars ; 
that  a  share  in  the  same  shall  be  twenty-five  dollars,  and  books  of  sub- 
scription to  the  said  capital  stock,  or  to  such  portions  thereof  as,  from 
time  to  time  may  by  the  directors,  for  the  time  being,  be  deemed 
proper  and  necessary,  shall  be  opened  by  the  appointment,  or  under 
the  direction  of  the  directors  hereinafter 'named,  subject  to  such  rules, 
limitations,  and  conditions  as  by  them  shall  be  prescribed,  and  the 
stock  of  the  said  company  shall  be  deemed  personal  property. 

SEC.  3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  stock,  property  and 
affairs  of  the  said  company  shall  be  managed  and  conducted  by  and 
under  the  direction  of  a  president  and  seven  directors,  being  stock- 
holders; that  the  said  directors  shall  be  elected  on  the  first  Monday 
of  June,  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-four,  and  on  the  same 
day  in  each  succeeding  year  thereafter,  and  shall  hold  their  offices 
for  one  year  from  the  day  of  their  election,  and  until  other  directors 
shall  be  elected  in  their  place;  that  such  elections  shall  be  held  in 
Georgetown  aforesaid,  at  such  time  and  place  as  a  majority  of  the 
directors  for  the  time  being  shall  appoint,  and  notice  of  such  time  and 
place  of  election  shall  be  given  by  advertisement  in  one  or  more  news- 
papers printed  and  published  in  the  said  town,  at  least  fourteen  days 
before  Hie  day  of  holding  such  election,  and  every  such  election  shall 
be  by  ballot,  and  by  such  of  the  stockholders  as  shall  attend  for  that 
purpose,  either  in  person  or  by  proxy,  and  each  stockholder  shall  be 
entitled  to  one  vote  for  each  share  of  the  stock  which  he  or  she  may 
have  held,  and  may  continue  to  hold  in  his  or  her  own  name,  for  at 
least  fourteen  days  before  the  time  of  voting;  and  the  persons  having 
the  greatest  number  of  votes  shall  be  the  directors;  and  if  it  shall 
happen  that  two  or  more  persons  shall  have  an  equal  number  of  votes, 
the  directors  in  office  at  the  time  of  such  election  shall,  by  a  plurality 
of  votes,  given  by  ballot,  determine  which  of  the  persons  so  having  an 
equal  number  of  votes  shall  be  director  or  directors,  so  as  to  complete 
the  whole  number  to  be  chosen ;  and  the  directors  so  chosen  shall,  as 
soon  as  may  be  thereafter,  proceed  to  elect  by  ballot,  one  of  their  own 
number,  or  one  of  the  shareholders.,  to  be  their  president ;  and  when- 
ever any  vacancy  shall  happen  in  the  said  board,  of  president  and 
directors,  the  same  shall  be  filled  up  by  the  remaining  directors  by 
plurality  of  votes,  until  the  next  annual  election:  Provided  always, 
That  the  president  of  the  said  company,  and  at  least  six  of  the  direc- 
tors, shall  be  inhabitants  of  the  said  town. 

SEC.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  David  English,  Robert  P. 
Dodge,  Richard  Cruikshank,  William  M.  Fitzhugh,  Richard  Pettit, 
William  F.  Seymour,  Adolphus  H.  Pickrell  and  William  Bucknell, 
shall  be  the  first  directors  of  the  said  company;  the  first  named  of 
whom  shall  be  their  president,  and  shall  hold  their  offices  until  the 
first  Monday  in  June,  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-four, 
and  until  others  are  chosen  in  their  places.  * 

SEC.  5.  And  be -it  further  enacted,  That  in  case  it  shall  happen  at 
any  time  that  an  election  for  directors  shall  not  take  place  on  the  day 
appointed  by  this  act  for  that  purpose,  the  said  corporation  shall  not 
for  that  cause,  or  for  any  non-user,  be  deemed  to  be  dissolved,  but  it 
shall  and  may  be  lawful  to  hold  an  election  for  directors  on  anv  other 


24757 


day,  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  provided  for  by  the  by-laws  of  the 
said  corporation. 

SEC.  6.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful 
for  the  directors  or  a  majority  of  them,  to  require  payment  of  the  sub- 
scriptions to  the  capital  stock  of  the  said  corporation  at  such  times 
and  in  such  proportions  as  they,  or  a  majority  of  them,  shall  deem  fit, 
under  the  penalty  of  forfeiting  any  or  all  previous  payment  or  pay- 
ments thereon:  Provided,  Notice  of  the  instalment  required  to  be 
paid  shall  have  been  published  at  least  fourteen  days  in  one  or  more 
of  the  newspapers  printed  and  published  in  the  said  town,  before  the 
day  appointed  for  the  payment  thereof. 

SEC.  7.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  President  and  Direc- 
tors, shall  have  full  power  and  authority  to  manufacture,  make  and 
sell  gas,  to  be  made  of  coal,  oil,  tar,  peat,  pitch,  turpentine,  or  other 
material,  and  to  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  lighting  the  City  of 
Georgetown,  or  the  streets  thereof,  and  any  buildings,  manufactories, 
or  houses  therein  contained  and  situate :  and  to  lay  pipes  for  the  pur- 
pose of  conducting  gas  in  any  of  the  streets,  lanes  or  alleys  of  the  said 
city:  Provided,  however,  That  the  said  company  shall  so  conduct 
the  manufacture  of  gas  as  not  to  injure  private  property,  or  create  a 
nuisance ;  and  that  the  said  pipes  shall  be  laid,  subject  to  such  condi- 
tions, and  in  compliance  with  such  regulations,  as  the  Corporation  of 
Georgetown,  aforesaid,  may  from  time  to  time  prescribe:  And  pro- 
vided further,  That  the  right  to  erect  and  put  up  any  buildings, 
works,  or  apparatus,  for  the  manufacture  of  gas,  shall  be  subject  to 
such  terms,  conditions,  restrictions  and  regulations  as  the  said  Corpo- 
tion  of  Georgetown  may,  from  time  to  time,  prescribe  or  direct. 

SEC.  8.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  if  any  person  or  persons, 
shall  wilfully  do,  or  cause  to  be  done,  any  act  or  acts  whatsoever, 
whereby  the  works  of  the  said  company,  or  any  pipe,  conduit,  plug, 
cork,  reservoir,  or  any  engine,  machine  or  structure,  or  any  matter  or 
thing  appertaining  to  the  same  shall  be  stopped,  obstructed,  impaired, 
weakened,  injured,  or  destroyed,  the  person  or  persons  so  offending 
shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  said  corporation  double  the  amount  of  the 
damage  sustained  by  means  of  such  offence  or  injury,  to  be  recovered 
in  the  name  of  said  corporation,  with  cost  of  suit  in  any  action  of 
debt,  or  on  the  case,  to  be  brought  in  any  court  having  cognizance 
thereof. 

SEC.  9.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  nothing  in  this  act  shall  be 
construed  to  prevent  any  person  or  persons,  nor  any  incorporated 
company,  hereafter  to  be  created  by  Congress  for  that  purpose,  from 
engaging  in  and  pursuing  the  business  specified  in  the  seventh  sec- 
tion of  this  act ;  and  that  it  shall  be  lawful  for  Congress  at  any  time 
hereafter,  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  this  act. 

SEC.  10.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  nothing  in  this  act  con- 
tained shall  be  construed  to  authorize  the  said  Georgetown  Gas-light 
Company  to  make,  issue  or  put  in  circulation,  any  bill,  draft,  check, 
order,  promissory  note,  change  ticket,  or  any  thing  else  promising  or 
agreeing  to  pay  money,  intended  to  circulate  as  money,  or  the  ten- 
dency of  which  shall  be  to  circulate  as  money  or  currency,  and  the 
violation  of  anyone  of  the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  be  a  for- 
feiture of  the  charter  hereby  given,  and  shall  subject  each  of  the 
directors  voting  for  the  same,  to  a  fine  of  fifty  dollars. 

24757 


8 

SEC.  11.  And  ~be  it  further  enacted,  That  each  of  the  stockholders 
in  the  Georgetown  Gas-light  Company  shall  be  held  liable  in  his  or 
her  individual  capacity  for  all  the  debts  and  liabilities  of  the  said 
company,  however  contracted  or  incurred,  to  be  recovered  by  suit,  as 
other  debts  or  liabilities,  before  the  court  or  tribunal  having  juris- 
diction of  the  case. 

SEC.  12.  And  ~be  it  further  enacted,  That  all  right  granted  to  the 
Washington  Gas-light  Company  by  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  amend 
an  act  entitled  'An  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  Gas-light  Com- 
pany, approved  July  eight,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-eight',  ap- 
proved August  second,  eighteen  hundred  and  forty-two,"  to  lay  gas 
mains  or  pipes  in  the  City  of  Georgetown,  be  and  the  same  is  hereby 
repealed. 

AN  ACT  Authorizing  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  to  increase  the  capital 
stock  of  said  company,  approved  January  3,  1855,  (10  Stats.,  p.  835). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Washing- 
ton Gas-light  Company  be,  and  the  same  hereby  is.  authorized  to  in- 
crease the  capital  stock  thereof  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dol- 
lars. 

SEC.  2.  And  ~be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  stock  shall  be  sub- 
scribed in  the  books  of  said  company  in  shares  of  twenty  dollars,  and 
the  holders  of  the  said  increased  certificates  of  stock  shall  be  held 
subject  to  the  same  liability  as  is  provided  in  the  eleventh  section  of 
the  original  act  of  incorporation,  approved  July  eighth,  eighteen 
hundred  and  forty-eight. 

AN   ACT    To    amend    the    charter    of    the    Washington    Gas-light    Company. 
Approved  May  24,  1866  (14  Stats.,  p.  53). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  charter 
of  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby, 
amended  in  the  third  section  by  substituting  the  word  "  February  " 
for  the  word  "  January." 

SEC.  2.  And  ~be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  capital  stock  of  said 
company  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  increased  five  hundred  thousand 
dollars,  subject  to  the  same  liability  as  is  provided  in  the  eleventh 
section  of  the  original  act  of  incorporation,  approved  July  eighth, 
eighteen  hundred  and  forty-eight. 

A  RESOLUTION  relative  to  lighting  the  streets  of  Washington  City,  District 
of  Columbia,  approved  July  27,  1868; 

Whereas,  the  municipal  authorities  of  the  city  of  Washington 
have  failed  to  carry  out  the  arrangements  for  lighting  the  streets  of 
said  city,  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  an  act  entitled  "An 
act  making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil  expenses  of  the  govern- 
ment," approved  July  twenty-eight,  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty- 
six:  Therefore, 

Be  it  resolved  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  mayor 
and  city  councils  of  the  city  of  Washington  be,  and  they  are  hereby, 
authorized  and  directed  to  levy  and  collect  a  tax  from  the  property- 

24757 


holders  of  the  city  of  Washington  sufficient  to  defray  the  expenses 
of  lighting  the  avenue  and  street  lamps  of  said  city  with  six-feet 
burners,  twenty-one  nights  in  each  month,  from  dark  until  day  light  r 
and  keep  said  lamps  so  lighted  each  year. 

SEC.  2.  And  T)e  it  further  resolved,  that  the  mayor  and  city  coun- 
cils of  the  city  of  Washington  be  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to 
contract  with  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  for  the  term  of 
one  year,  and  so  from  year  to  year  until  otherwise  provided  by  law, 
at  such  rates  as  may  be  agreed  upon  not  exceeding  the  maximum 
now  fixed  by  law  for  all  the  illuminating  gas  required  for  the 
avenue  and  street  lamps  and  public  offices  of  the  city  and  public 
grounds  under  the  control  of  said  city. 

.  SEC.  3.  And  be  it  further  resolved,  That  the  mayor  and  city  coun- 
cils of  the  city  of  Washington  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized 
and  directed  to  increase  from  time  to  time,  as  the  public  good  may 
require,  the  number  of  street  lamps  on  any  of  the  streets,  lanes, 
alleys,  public  ways  and  grounds,  in  the  city  of  Washington,  and  to 
do  any  and  all  things  pertaining  to  the  well  lighting  of  the  city, 
and  to  levy  and  collect  a  tax  from  the  property-holders  therefor. 

SEC.  4.  And  ~be  it  further  resolved,  That  in  the  event  of  the  failure 
of  the  mayor  and  city  councils  to  levy  and  collect  the  tax  herein 
authorized,  or  to  light  the  said  city  as  herein  directed,  then  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Interior  be,  and  he  is  hereby,  authorized  and  directed 
to  levy  a  tax  upon  the  property  of  said  city,  and  to  collect  the  same, 
sufficient  to  light  said  city  for  the  current  year,  and  so  from  year  to 
year,  in  case  of  such  failure  of  said  mayor  and  city  councils  to  light 
as  herein  directed  and  to  fully  execute  the  provisions  of  this  joint 
resolution  in  the  place  and  stead  of  the  said  mayor  and  city 
councils. 

SEC.  5.  And  be  it  further  resolved,  That  nothing  herein  contained 
shall  be  construed  to  relieve  the  said  Washington  Gas-light  Company 
from  paying  the  internal  revenue  tax  imposed  by  law. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  supply  deficiencies  in  appropria- 
tions, etc.,  approved  April  10,  1869.     (16  Stats.,  p.  13.) 

SEC.  10.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  Washington  Gas- 
light Company  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  required  to  increase  their 
rate  of  discount  for  prompt  payment  to  eighteen  and  three- fourths 
percent  from  and  after  the  first  clay  of  Xovember  next. 

AN  ACT  To  increase  the  capital  stock  and  to  extend  the  works  of  the  Washing- 
ton Gas-light  Company,  approved  May  29,  1872.     (17  Stats.,  p.  192.) 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  capital 
stock  of  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  be,  and  the  same  is  here- 
by, increased  two  hundred  thousand  dollars,  with  the  privilege  of 
increasing  it  not  exceeding  one  million  dollars,  as  the  same  may  be 
required  from  time  to  time,  for  extending  their  works  in  the  District 
of  Columbia,  east  of  Rock  Creek:  Provided,  however,  That  said  in- 
crease of  capital  stock  shall  not  be  made  from  undivided  profits  of 
said  company  which  have  already  accrued,  or  may  hereafter  accrue, 
but  from  capital  stock  actually  paid  in:  Provided,  also,  That  said 
increased  capital  stock  shall  be  subject  to  all  the  conditions  of  the 
charter  of  said  Washington  Gas-light  Company. 

24757—08—2 


10 

AN  ACT  To  extend  the  works  of  the  Georgetown  Gas-light  Company,  approved 
March  3,  1873.     (17  Stats.,  p.  629.) 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  rights  and 
privileges  granted  by  the  act  approved  July  20,  1854,  entitled,  "An 
;act  to  incorporate  the  Georgetown  Gas-light  Company,"  be,  and  the 
same  are  hereby,  so  extended  as  to  cover  all  the  territory  within  the 
limits  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  lying  on  the  western  side  of  Rock 
Creek. 

AN  ACT  Regulating  gas-works,  approved  June  23,  1874  (18  Stats.,  p.  277). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  from  and  after 
the  thirtieth  day  of  June,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy -four,  the 
illuminating 'power  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any  gas-light  company, 
person,  or  persons,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  shall  be  equal  to  six- 
teen candles  by  the  Bunsen  photometer,  using  the  English  parlia- 
mentary standard  Argand-burner,  having  fifteen  holes  and  a  seven- 
inch  chimney,  consuming  five  cubic  feet  of  gas  per  hour,  and  such  gas 
shall  not  contain  more  than  twenty  grains  of  sulphur  in  any  form  in 
one  hundred  cubic  feet,  nor  more  than  five  grains  of  ammonia  in  any 
form  in  one  hundred  cubic  feet.  When  the  illuminating  gas  supplied 
by  any  company,  person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  shall 
at  any  one  time  be  of  less  illuminating  power  or  of  less  purity  than 
according  to  the  standard  just  heretofore  given,  it  shall  be  so  reported 
by  the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters  to  the  company,  person,  or  persons 
supplying  the  same,  who  shall  be  subject  to  a  penalty  of  one  hundred 
dollars.,  to  be  recovered  before  the  proper  tribunal  and  paid  into  the 
treasury  of  the  District  of  Columbia  aforesaid,  for  each  and  every  day 
during  which  such  violation  shall  continue :  Pro  vided,  howe  ver,  That 
if  it  shall  appear  that  such  deviation  from  the  above-named  standards 
could  not  have  been  prevented  by  ordinary  care  and  prudence,  but 
was  occasioned  by  some  unavoidable  cause,  then  the  said  penalty  shall 
not  be  enforced. 

SEC.  2.  That  a  suitable  and  impartial  person,  competent  as  a  chem- 
ist, who  is  not  a  stockholder  or  employee  in  any  gas-works,  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  by  and  with  the 
advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  to  be  designated  and  known  as  in- 
spector of  gas  and  meters,  whose  compensation  shall  be  a  salary  of 
two  thousand  dollars  per  annum,  and  whose  duties  shall  be  to  test  and 
determine  the  illuminating  power  and  purity  of  the  gas  furnished  by 
;any  company,  person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia ;  and  to 
test,  prove,  and  seal  all  meters  that  may  be  hereafter  used  by  them; 
and  that  a  suitable  person,  who  shall  be  a  gas-fitter  by  trade,  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  President,  as  aforesaid,  on  the  recommendation  of 
the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters,  as  an  assistant  inspector,  at  a  salary 
of  one  thousand  dollars  per  annum,  who  shall  assist  in  the  duties 
specified  under  the  direction  of  the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters. 

SEC.  8.  That  a  laboratory  shall  be  provided  and  fitted  up  by  the 
Washington  Gas-Light  Company,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the 
inspector,  in  the  central  part  of  the  city  of  Washington,  at  a  distance 
as  near  as  may  be,  of  two  thousand  feet  from  any  gas-works,  and  fur- 
nished with  suitable  apparatus  for  the  transaction  of  the  business 

24757 


11 

of  the  inspector  and  assistant  inspector,  for  which  it  is  intended,  and 
the  laboratory  shall  be  kept  open  on  all  business-days  between  the 
hours  of  eight  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  and  five  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon :  Provided,  That  the  cost  of  fitting  up  said  laboratory  shall  be 
paid  for  by  each  Gas  Company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  in  pro- 
portion to  their  sale  of  gas  for  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy- 
three. 

SEC.  4.  That  the  company,  person  or  persons  furnishing  the  gas 
may,  if  they  see  fit,  011  each  occasion  of  the  testing  of  the  gas  by  the 
inspector  or  assistant  inspector,  be  represented  by  some  officer,  but 
such  officer  shall  not  interfere  in  the  testing. 

SEC.  5.  That  daily  inspections,  Sundays  excepted,  shall  be  made  in 
conformity  to  the  intent  of  this  act  between  the  hours  of  five  and 
eleven  o'clock  in  the  .afternoon,  and  a  record  shall  be  kept  of  each 
inspection,  giving  the  illuminating  power  and  purity,  which  shall  be 
open  to  the  public,  and  a  copy  of  the  daily  inspection  shall  be  fur-, 
nished  the  following  day  to  the  company,  person,  or  persons  furnish- 
ing the  gas,  Saturday's  inspection  to  be  furnished  on  Monday,  and 
a  full  report  for  the  month  to  be  furnished,  upon  request,  to 
any  daily  paper  printed  in  the  city  of  Washington  on  the  day  of  their 
publication,  next  after  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  each  month,  to  in- 
clude each  day's  test  from  the  date  of  previous  publication,  and 
giving  the  average  illuminating  power  for  the  month. 

SEC.  6.  That  all  bills  for  gas  furnished  by  any  company,  person,  or 
persons  shall  state  the  average  illuminating  power  for  "the  month; 
and  if  the  same  shall  fall  below  sixteen  candles,  as  in  this  act  pre- 
scribed, then  the  amount  of  the  bill  shall  be  reduced  pro  rata. 

SEC.  7.  That  in  testing  meters,  the  inspector  or  assistant  inspector 
shall  ascertain  whether  the  meter  is  of  proper  construction,  and  re- 
quires only  the  pressure  of  a  column  of  water  indicated  by  the  water- 
gauge,  commonly  used  for  such  tests,  of  one-fourth  of  an  inch  high  to 
work  it,  and  whether  it  works  regularly  and  correctly,  and  registers 
exactly  the  amount  of  gas  passing  through  it,  first,  at  the  rate  the 
meter  is  marked  to  supply ;  secondly,  at  one-third  its  rate ;  thirdly, 
at  twice  its  rate.  The  standard  foot  shall  be  one  cubic  foot,  contain- 
ing sixty-two  and  three  hundred  and  twenty-one  one-thousandths 
pounds,  avoirdupois  weight,  of  distilled  water"  at  the  temperature  of 
sixty-two  degrees  Fahrenheit,  and  with  a  barometrical  pressure  of 
thirty  inches;  and  meters  registering  within  two  per  centum  either 
way  of  the  exact  number  of  such  feet  passing  through  them  at  the 
first-named  rate,  and  within  three  per  centum  at  the  second  and  third 
rates,  and  no  others  shall  be  deemed  accurate  and  be  stamped  by  the 
inspector.  The  inspector  shall  keep  at  the  laboratory  a  correct  record 
of  all  meters  inspected  by  him,  with  their  proof  at  the  time  of  in- 
spection, which  record  shall  be  open  at  all  times  to  the  public  for  any 
reasonable  examination  by  any  company,  person,  or  persons  having 
any  interest  therein. 

SEC.  8.  That  any  gas-meters  now  in  use  shall  be  proved  and  tested 
on  the  written  request  of  the  consumer  of  gas  on  whose  premises  it 
may  be,  and  in  his  presence,  if  he  requires,  upon  the  payment  in  ad- 
vance to  the  inspector  or  assistant  inspector  of  fifty  cents"  for  each  and 
every  meter  inspected,  proved,  and  sealed,  and  if  any  such  meter,  on 
being  tested,  shall  be  found  to  register  inaccurately  to  the  injury  of 


24757 


12 

the  consumer  to  an  extent  exceeding  two  per  centum,  the  fee  of  fifty 
cents  shall  be  returned  to  the  person  applying  for  said  inspection  and 
be  paid  to  the  inspector  by  the  company,  person,  or  persons  supplying 
the  gas;  and  every  such  meter  shall  be  considered  correct,  and  sealed 
accordingly,  which  shall  register  quantities  varying  from  the  true 
standard  measure  of  gas  of  not  more  than  two  per  centum,  and  a 
record  shall  be  kept  of  the  same  and  of  all  fees  so  collected.  And  all 
meters  hereafter  used  by  any  gas-company,  person,  or  persons  shall  be 
first  inspected,  proved,  and  sealed  at  the  laboratory  provided  for  by 
this  act;  and  for  such  inspection,  proving,  and  sealing  the  company, 
in  the  first  instance,  and  thereafter  the  company,  person,  or  persons 
applying  to  have  the  meter  inspected,  shall  pay  fifty  cents  for  each 
meter,  a  record  of  which  shall  be  kept  and  of  the  fees  so  collected : 
and  all  fees  shall  be  applied  to  the  payment  of  the  expenses  for  main- 
taining and  keeping  in  good  order  and  repair  the  laboratory  and 
apparatus. 

SEC.  9.  That  each  company,  person,  or  persons  manufacturing  illu- 
minating gas  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  shall,  when  required,  in 
writing,  by  the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters,  bring  to  the  laboratory 
any  meter  that  may  have  been  required  to  be  inspected,  proved,  and 
sealed,  and  to  return  the  same  to  its  proper  place  after  such  inspec- 
tion; and  it  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  other  party  or  person  to 
remove  and  return  meters. 

SEC.  10.  That  the  inspector  and  assistant  inspector  of  gas  and 
meters  shall  each  give  bonds  to  the  extent  of  double  his  annual  salary, 
and  shall  each  take  an  oath  or  affirmation,  before  some  officer  legally 
qualified  to  administer  the  same,  that  he  will  faithfully,  diligently, 
and  impartially  discharge  the  duties  of  his  office. 

SEC.  11.  That  the  Washington  Gas- Light  Company  shall  be  author- 
ized, on  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  to  charge  and  receive 
for  illuminating  gas  furnished  to  and  paid  for  by  the  Government 
of  the  United  States,  at  the  rate  of  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per 
one  thousand  cubic  feet;  and  when  furnished  and  paid  for  by  other 
parties,  or  by  the  inhabitants  of  the -city  of  Washington,  at  the  rate  of 
two  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents  per  one  thousand  cubic  feet :  Pro- 
vided, That  if  the  party  or  inhabitants  so  furnished  shall  pay 
monthly  any  bill  within  seven  days  after  the  same  shall  have  been 
presented,  said  party  shall  be  entitled  to  a  discount  upon  the  amount 
of  such  bill  at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  cents  per  one  thousand  cubic 
feet.  And  all  laws  authorizing  any  higher  rates  are  hereby  repealed : 
Provided,  That  when  the  price  of  gas  coals  delivered  at  the  works  of 
the  Washington  Gas-Light  Company  shall  advance  to  eight  dollars 
and  fifty  cents  per  ton,  the  price  of  gas  to  consumers  may  be  advanced 
ten  cents  per  thousand  cubic  feet  and  an  additional  ten  cents  per  thou- 
sand feet  for  each  additional  dollar  per  ton  that  gas  coals  may 
advance  in  price  and  in  like  manner  a  reduction  of  ten  cents  per 
thousand  feet  shall  be  made  for  each  and  every  dollar  per  ton  that 
gas  coals  may  fall  in  price  below  seven  dollars  per  ton.  And  for  that 
purpose  the  Washington  Gas-Light  Company  shall  in  the  month  of 
May  in  each  year  furnish  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  with  a  state- 
ment of  all  their  coal  contracts  or  purchases  for  the  ensuing  year 
excepting  the  Ritchie  mineral  and  the  Richmond  coal,  the  cost  of 
which  shall  not  enter  into  any  calculation  in  making  an  average, 

24757 


13 

which  statement  shall  be  sworn  to  before  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  by 
their  Engineer  and  Secretary,  and  the  advance  or  reduction  of  price 
shall  take  place  on  the  first  of  July  ensuing. 

SEC.  12.  That  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  shall  be  author- 
ized and  required  to  furnish  illuminating  gas  to  the  government*  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  within  the  distance  of  fifty  yards  from  any 
of  their  mains,  on  the  same  terms  as  to  the  Government  of  the  United 
States,  and  in  case  of  the  non-payment  of  any  monthly  bills  by  the 
said  District  beyond  the  period  of  ten  days  from  the  time  of  presenta- 
tion, the  company  shall  be  entitled  to  demand  and  receive  interest 
thereon  from  date  until  paid.  And  the  said  company  shall  light, 
extinguish,  keep  clean,  and  repair  the  Washington  City  street-lamps 
at  the  uniform  price  of  forty  dollars  for  each  lamp  per  annum,  to 
burn  two  thousand  two  hundred  hours  per  annum,  with  a  six-foot 
burner  on  each  lamp,  subject  to  any  regulation  that  may  be  prescribed 
by  the  city  authorities  as  to  the  time  of  lighting  and  extinguishing 
the  same,  and  any  extra  number  of  hours  to  be  charged  and  paid  for 
at  the  same  rate:  Provided,  That  the  city  of  Washington  shall  fur- 
nish, when  necessary,  new  lanterns  to  replace  old  ones,  and  shall  fur- 
nish and  pay  for  the  reasonable  expense  of  erecting  new  lamp-posts 
to  replace  such  as  are  old,  damaged,  and  unfit  for  use. 

SEC.  13.  That  if  any  person  or  persons,  supplied  with  gas,  neglect 
or  refuse  to  pay  the  amount  due  for  the  same,  such  company  may  stop 
the  gas  from  entering  the  premises  of  such  person  or  persons.  In  no 
case  shall  the  officers,  servants,  or  workmen  of  the  company  remove  a 
meter  from  premises  supplied  by  the  company,  unless  by  consent  of 
the  consumer,  without  first  giving  forty-eight  hours'  notice  in  writing 
by  leaving  the  same  at  the  premises  of  the  consumer;  and  said 
removal  shall  take  place  only  between  the  hours  of  eight  o'clock  in 
the  forenoon  and  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

SEC.  14.  That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  Congress  at  any  time  hereafter 
to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  this  act,  and  all  acts  and  parts  of  acts  incon- 
sistent herewith  are  hereby  repealed. 

SEC.  15.  That  any  person  who,  Avith  intent  to  injure  or  defraud  any 
gas  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  shall  make  or  cause  to  be 
made  any  pipe,  tube  or  other  instrument  or  contrivance,  or  connect 
the  same,  or  cause  it  to  be  connected  with  any  main  service  pipe  or 
other  pipe  for  conducting  or  supplying  illuminating  gas  in  such  man- 
ner as  to  connect  with  and  be  calculated  to  supply  illuminating  gas  to 
any  burner  or  orifice  by  which  illuminating  gas  is  consumed,  around 
or  without  passing  through  the  meter  provided  for  the  measuring 
and  registering  of  the  quantity  of  gas  there  consumed,  shall  be  deemed 
guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  upon  conviction  shall  be  punished  by 
imprisonment  not  exceeding  six  months  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  tw< 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars. 

SEC.  16.  That  the  price  which  may  be  charged  for  gas  by  any  Gas- 
Light  Company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  uniform  and  the 
same  to  all  consumers  and  any  reduction  made  in  the  price  or  cost  to 
any  person  or  persons,  except  to  officers  of  the  company,  shall  furnish 
a  legal  right  on  the  part  of  any  other  person  or  persons  to  demand  gas 
at  the  same  cost  or  price. 

Approved,  June  23,  1874. 

24757 


14 

Extracts  from  an  act  providing  a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  approved  June  11,  1878.     (20  Stats.,  pp.  104  and  107.) 

Said  Commissioners  shall  have  power  to  erect,  light  and  maintain 
lamp-posts,  with  lamps,  outside  of  the  city  limits,  when,  in  their 
judgment,  it  shall  be  deemed  proper  or  necessary. 

(Page  107:)  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  to  see  that  all  water  and  gas  mains,  service  pipes, 
and  sewer  connections  are  laid  upon  any  street  or  avenue  proposed 
to  be  paved  or  otherwise  improved  before  any  such  pavement  or  other 
permanent  works  are  put  down ;  and  the  Washington  Gas-light  Com- 
pany, under  the  direction  of  said  Commissioners,  shall,  at  its  own 
expense,  take  up,  lay  and  replace  all  gas  mains  on  any  street  or  ave- 
nue to  be  paved,  at  such  time  and  place  as  said  Commissioners  shall 
direct. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil  expenses  of  the 
Government,  approved  June  20,  1878.     (20  Stats.,  p.  208.) 

And  the  said  Commissioners  are  hereby  authorized  *  *  *  to 
require  the  Washington  Gas-light  Company  to  light  the  city  lamps  at 
such  price  as  shall  to  the  said  Commissioners  appear  to  be  just  and 
reasonable.  And  all  expenses  heretofore  incurred  by  the  general  gov- 
ernment for  the  board  of  health,  for  the  metropolitan  police,  and  for 
gas  inspection,  shall  hereafter  be  a  charge  upon  the  government  of 
the  District. 

Extract   from   an   act   making  appropriations  for  expenses  of   the   District   of 
Columbia,  approved  July  1,  1882.     (22  Stats.,  p.  139.) 

And  hereafter  all  railroad  companies  using  engines  propelled  by 
steam  shall  provide  for  the  lighting  of  the  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  and 
grounds  through  which  their  tracks  may  be  laid,  under  the  direc- 
tion and  control  of  the  Commissioners. 

m 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1883.  '(22  Stats.,  p.  466.) 

And  hereafter  all  railroad  companies  using  engines  propelled  by 
steam  shall  pay  to  the  District  for  the  lighting  of  the  streets,  avenues, 
alleys  and  grounds  through  which  their  tracks  may  be  laid,  under 
the  direction  and  control  of  the  Commissioners;  and  in  case  of 
default  of  payment  of  such  bills,  actions  at  law  may  be  maintained 
by  the  District  of  Columbia  against  said  railroad  company  therefor. 

Extract  from  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, approved  July  9,  1886.     (24  Stats.,  p.  134.) 

For  street  lamps :  For  illuminating  material  and  lighting,  extin- 
guishing, repairing,  and  cleaning  lamps  on  avenues,  streets,  and 
alleys,  and  for  purchasing  and  erecting  new  lamp-posts,  and  to  re- 
place such  as  are  old,  damaged,  and  unfit  for  use,  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars :  Provided,  That  no  more  than  twenty  dollars  per  annum 
per  lamp  for  each  street  lamp  shall  be  paid  for  gas,  lighting,  extin- 
guishing, repairing,  and  cleaning  under  any  expenditure  provided 
for  in  this  act;  and  said  lamps  shall  not  burn  less  than  two  thousand 
six  hundred  hours  per  annum;  and  the  Commissioners  are  authorized, 
in  their  discretion,  to  substitute  other  illuminating  material  at  the 

24757 


15 

same  or  less  price,  and  to  use  so  much  of  the  sum  hereby  appropriated 
as  may  be  necessary  for  that  purpose ;  but  not  exceeding  ten  thousand 
dollars  of  the  above  amount  may  be  used  in  providing  electric  lights 
on  one  or  more  of  the  principal  thoroughfares  of  the  city,  without 
regard  to  this  limitation :  Provided  further.  That  the  Commissioners 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  not  be  authorized  to  make  any  con- 
tract for  gas  or  other  illuminating  material,  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  this  paragraph,  for  any  longer  period  than  one  year. 

Extract  from  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, approved  March  3,  1887.  (24  Stats.,  p.  574.) 

*  *  *  but  not  exceeding  twenty  thousand  dollars  of  the  above 
amount  may  be  used  in  providing  electric  lights  011  one  or  more  of 
the  principal  thoroughfares  of  the  city,  without  regard  to  this  limi- 
tation, but  at  the  lowest  reasonable  price  obtainable.  *  *  * 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Eckiugton  and  Soldiers'  Home  Railway 
Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  19,  1888  (25  Stats.,, 
p.  190). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled.  That  Edward  F. 
Beale,  Edward  C.  Dean,  A.  L.  Barbour,  George  Truesclell.  James  L. 
Barbour,  George  E.  Moore,  Charles  C.  Duncanson,  Michael  Connor,, 
and  Joseph  Paul,  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  their  associates, 
successors,  and  assigns,  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  created  a  body  cor- 
porate under  the  name  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldier's  Home  Rail- 
way Company  cf  the  District  of  Columbia,  with  authority  to  con- 
struct and  lay  down  a  single  or  double-track  railway,  with  the 
necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  "and  other  mechanical  devices  and 
sewer  connections  necessary  to  operate  the  same  by  horse,  cable,  or 
electric  power,  *,  also  with  the  privilege  of  extending  said 

main  line  along  New  York  avenue  to  Ivy  City,  within  one  year  after 
said  avenue  is  opened  and  graded  to  Ivy  City,  with  the  right  to  run 
public  carriages  thereon  propelled  by  horse,  electric,  or  cable  power. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Rock  Creek  Railway  Company  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  (now  the  Capital  Traction  Company),  approved  June 
23,  1888  (25  Stats.,  p.  199). 

It  shall  be  lawful  for  said  corporation,  its  successors  or  assigns,  to> 
operate  its  said  road  by  horse,  cable,  or  electric  power. 

Extract  from  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, approved  July  18,  1888  (25  Stats.,  pp.  320  and  323). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection,  on 
one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown,  thirty  thousand  dollars:  Provided*  That  no  more  than 
fifty  cents  shall  be  paid  for  each  light  per  night  burning  from  sunset 
to  sunrise,  and  each  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual 
candlepower. 

And  under  the  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  telephone  service  "  the 
f  olloAving : 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  not,  after  the 
fifteenth  day  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-eight,  per- 
mit or  authorize  any  additional  telegraph,  telephone,  electric  lighting 

24757 


or  other  wires  to  be  erected  or  maintained  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets 
or  avenues  of  the  city  of  Washington,  and  the  said  Commissioners  are 
hereby  directed  to  investigate  and  report  to  Congress  at  the  beginning 
of  its  next  session  the  best  method  of  interring  the  same  under  ground, 
and  such  legal  regulation  thereof  as  may  be  needed;  and  they  shall 
report  what  manner  of  conduits  should  be  maintained  by  the  city  of 
Washington,  if  any,  and  the  cost  of  constructing  and  maintaining  the 
same,  and  what  charge,  if  any,  should  be  made  by  the  city  for  the  use 
of  its  conduits  by  the  persons  or  corporations  placing  wires  therein, 
and  upon  what  terms  and  conditions  the  same  should  be  used  when 
required  so  to  do,  and  for  such  investigation  one  thousand  dollars  is 
hereby  appropriated:  Provided,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  may,  under  such  reasonable  conditions  as  they  may 
prescribe,  authorize  the  wires  of  any  existing  telegraph,  telephone,  or 
electric  light  company  now  operating  in  the  District  of  Columbia  to 
be  laid  under  any  street,  alley,  highway,  footway,  or  sidewalk  in  the 
District  whenever,  in  their  judgment,  the  public  interest  may  require 
the  exercise  of  such  authority;  such  privileges  as  may  be  granted 
hereunder  to  be  revocable  at  the  will  of  Congress  without  compensa- 
tion, and  no  such  authority  to  be  exercised  after  the  termination  of 
the  present  Congress. 

This  Congress,  the  Fiftieth,  expired  March  3,  1889. 

Extract  from  all  act  to  incorporate  the  Georgetown  and  Tennallytown  Raihvay 
Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  August  22,  1S8S  (25  Stats., 
p.  446 )/ 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  John  W. 
Thompson,  Richard  H.  Goldsborough,  William  J.  Thompson,  Henry 
H.  Dodge,  W.  K.  Ryan,  Osceola  C.  Green,  and  Norval  W.  Burchell, 
of  the  District  of  Columbia ;  Arthur  E.  Bateman,  T.  W.  Pearsall,  and 
Harvey  Durand,  of  the  city  and  State  of  New  York ;  and  Nathaniel 
W.  Bowe  and  John  A.  Coke,  of  the  city  of  Richmond,  State  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  their  associates,  successors,  and  assigns,  be,  and  they  are 
hereby,  created  a  body  corporate  under  the  name  of  the  Georgetown 
and  Tennallytown  'Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
with  authority  to  construct  and  lay  down  a  single  or  double  track 
railway,  with  necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  and  other  mechanical 
devices  for  operating  the  same  by  cable  or  electric  powder  for  carry- 
ing passengers  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  from  the  Potomac  River 
near  High  street,  to,  and  along  High  street  in  Georgetown  to  the  Ten- 
naltytown  road,  but  wholly  outside  of  the  limits  of  said  road,  and 
nlong  the  side  of  the  said  road  to  the  District  line ;  also  the  privilege 
of  laying  such  conduits  beneath  the  surface  of  Water  street  for  the 
purpose  of  conveying  or  communicating  power  from  any  suitable 
point  along  said  Water  street  to  said  High  street,  as  may  be  found 
necessary,  and  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia :  Provided,  however,  That  such  conduits  shall 
be  laid  so  as  not  to  impair  the  surface  of  said  Water  street  for  traffic 

and  w^agon  travel. 

******* 

Said  corporation  is  authorized  and  empowered  to  propel  its  cars 
on  such  other  lines  as  it  shall  coincide  with  by  cable  power  or  such 

24757 


17 

other  motive  power  as  it  is  authorized  to  use  to  propel  its  own  cars 
over  the  routes  prescribed  in  this  act. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Georgetown  Barge,  Dock,  Elevator,  and 
Railway  Company,  approved  September  26,  1888  (25  Stats.,  p.  492). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  Anthony 
Hyde,  William  A.  Gordon,  Robert  B.  Tenney,  Henry  H.  Dodge,  Mor- 
ris J.  Adler,  Edward  L.  Dent,  John  A.  Baker,  John  Marbury,  and 
Henry  M.  Sweeny,  their  associates  and  assigns,  be,  and  they  are  here- 
by, created  a  body  corporate  under  the  name  of  the  Georgetown 
Barge,  Dock,  Elevator,  and  Railway  Company,  with  authority  to  build 
and  maintain  a  dock  or  docks  on  the  Potomac  River  west  of  Rock 
Creek,  and  to  receive  therein,  and  send  therefrom,  barges,  vessels, 
cargoes,  and  railway  cars,  from  and  to  any  points  on  the  Potomac 
River  and  its  tributaries  and  coastwise;  and  to  construct  and  main- 
tain single  or  double  track  railways  in  the  city  of  Georgetown  or 
West  Washington,  District  of  Columbia,  through  and  along  Water 
street  *  *  *  and  to  run  cars  on  said  tracks,  sidings,  switches, 
turn-outs,  and  turn-tables,  propelled  by  steam,  horse,  or  electric 
power. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  l>rightwood  Railway  Company  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  approved  October  18,  1888   (25  Stats.,  p.  560). 

*  *  *  with  authority  to  construct  and  lay  down  a  single  or 
with  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  a  double 
track  railway,  with  the  necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  and  other  me- 
chanical devices  and  sewer  connections,  necessary  to  operate  the  same 
by  horse,  cable,  or  electric  power,  in  the  District  of  Columbia, 
through  and  along  Brightwood  avenue,  from  Boundary  street  to  the 
boundary-line  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  with  the  right  to  run 
public  carriages  thereon  propelled  by  horse,  electric,  or  cable  power. 
Said  corporation  is  authorized  and  empowered  to  propel 
its  cars  on  such  other  lines  as  it  shall  coincide  with  by  cable-power, 
or  such  other  motive  power  as  it  shall  use  to  propel  its  own  cars 
with  on  the  routes  prescribed  in  this  act,  and  may  repair  and  con- 
struct such  proportions  of  its  road  as  may  be  upon  the  line  or  route 
or  routes  of  any  other  road  thus  used ;  and  in  case  of  any  disagree- 
ment regarding  such  construction  or  repairs,  with  any  company 
whose  line  is  thus  used,  such  disagreement  may  be  heard  and  deter- 
mined summarily  upon  the  application  of  either  road  to  any  court 
in  said  District  having  common-law  jurisdiction.  Said  company 
shall  receive  a  rate  of  fare  not"  exceeding  five  cents  for  each  passen- 
ger, for  each  continuous  ride  between  all  points  of  its  line,  but  shall 
sell  six  tickets  for  twenty-five  cents:  Provided,  If  electric  wires  or 
cables  are  used  the  same  shall  be  placed  under  ground :  *  *  *  it 
shall  also  be  lawful  for  said  corporation,  its  successors  or  assigns,  to 
erect  and  maintain,  at  such  convenient  and  suitable  points  along  its 
lines  as  may  seem  most  desirable  to  the  board  of  directors  of  the  said 
corporation,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District,  an  engine  house  or  houses,  boiler  house  or  houses,  and  all 
other  buildings  necessary  for  the  successful  operations  of  an  electric 
or  cable-motor  railroad. 

24757 


18 

Extract  from  District  of  Columbia  appropriation  bill,  1S90,  approved  March  2, 
1889   (25  Stats.,  p.  797). 

******* 

That  any  company  authorized  by  law  to  run  cars  propelled  by 
horses  in  the  District  of  Columbia  is  hereby  authorized  to  substitute 
for  horses  electric  power  by  storage  or  independent  electrical  batteries 
or  underground  wire,  or  underground  cables  moved  by  steam  power, 
on  the  whole  or  any  portion  of  its  roadway,  with  authority  to  pur- 
chase and  use  any  terminal  grounds  and  facilities  necessary  for  the 
purpose. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  2,  1889  (25  Stats.,  p.  799  and  804). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection  on  one  or  more 
of  the  principal  streets  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown, 
including  the  south  side  of  Pennsylvania  avenue,  forty  thousand  dol- 
lars :  Provided,  That  no  more  than  sixty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid 
for  any  light  burning  from  sunset  to  sunrise  and  operated  wholly  or 
in  part  by  overhead  wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less 
than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropria- 
tion shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  after  September  thirtieth, 
eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-nine,  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist 
on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Washington 
and  Georgetown:  Provided  further,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  shall  investigate,  ascertain,  and  report  to  the 
first  session  of  the  Fifty-first  Congress  what  deduction  may  be  made 
for  gas  and  electric  lighting,  both  for  annual  and  for  five-year  con- 
tracts ;  and  that  they  be  authorized  to  invite  proposals  for  supplying 
said  light  at  reduced  rates,  and  in  this  they  are  not  limited  to  any 
one  system. 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  telephone  service,"  pro- 
vided as  follows: 

That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  hereafter, 
under  such  reasonable  conditions  as  they  may  prescribe,  authorize 
the  overhead  wires  of  any  telegraph,  telephone,  or  electric  light  com- 
pany to  be  laid  under  any  street,  alley,  highway,  footway,  or  sidewalk 
in  the  District,  whenever  in  their  judgment  the  public  interest  may 
require  the  exercise  of  such  authority,  such  privileges  as  may  be 
granted  hereunder  to  be  revocable  at  the  will  of  Congress  without 
compensation,  and  this  authority  to  continue  only  until  the  termina- 
tion of  the  Fifty-first  Congress. 

The  Fifty-first  Congress  expired  March  3,  1891. 

Extract  from  an.  act  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home 
Railway  Company,  approved  April  30,  1890  (26  Stats.,  p.  77). 

Provided,  That  if  electric  wires  or  cables  are  used  to  propel  its  cars 
over  said  streets  from  New  York  avenue  and  Fifth  to  Fifteenth  street 
northwest,  the  same  shall  be  placed  underground : 

******* 

And  said  company  is  authorized  to  use  overhead  wires  on  its  North 
Capitol  Street  Branch. 

******* 

24757 


19 

That  the  authority  of  said  company  by  this  act  or  any  other  act 
conferred  to  erect  or  use  overhead  wires  in  its  operations  within  the 
city  of  Washington  shall  absolutely  cease  and  determine  on  the  first 
day  of  July,  anno  Domini  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-three. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  change  the  route  of  the  Rock  Creek  Railway  Company, 
and  for  other  purposes,  approved  May  28,  1890   (20  Stats.,  p.  121). 

Provided,  That  said  company  shall  not  operate  any  part  of  its 
road  by  electric  power  with  overhead  wires  within  the  city  limits. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  August  6,  1890  (2G  Stats.,  pp.  300  and  304). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection, 
on  one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  of  the  cities  of  Washington 
and  Georgetown,  including  the  south  side  of  Pennsylvania  avenue", 
and  two  arc  lights  for  Freedmen's  Hospital  and  Asylum,  forty-six 
thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  no  more  than  sixty  cents  per  night 
,-hall  be  paid  for  any  lights  burning  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  no 
more  than  forty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  light  burning 
from  sunset  to  sunrise  and  operated  wholly  or  in  part  by  overhead 
wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thousand 
actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall  be  used 
for  electric  lighting  after  September  thirtieth,  eighteen  hundred 
and  ninety,  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or  over  any  of  the 
streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown: 
Provided  further,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia shall  investigate,  ascertain,  and  report  to  the  second  session  of 
the  Fifty-first  Congress  what  deductions  may  be  made  for  gas  and 
electric  lighting,  both  for  annual,  five-year,  and  ten-year  contracts, 
and  that  they  be  authorized  to  invite  proposals  for  supplying  said 
light  at  reduced  rates,  and  in  this  they  are  not  limited  to  any  one 
system. 

The  same  act,  under  head  of  '"  Telegraph  and  telephone  service," 
provided  as  follows : 

The  President  of  the  United  States  is  hereby  authorized  to  appoint 
a  board  consisting  of  three  persons,  one  of  whom  shall  be  an  army 
engineer,  skilled  in  electric  matters,  one  a  civil  engineer  of  known 
skill  and  experience  in  municipal  engineering,  and  one  an  expert 
electrician  of  high  repute :  Provided,  That  not  more  than  one  member 
shall  be  a  resident  of  the  District  of  Columbia ;  and  no  member  shall 
be  in  the  employ  of  any  electric  company,  or  shall  have  any  interest 
in  the  business  or  securities  of  such  company,  or  be  interested  in  any 
patent  or  any  form  of  conduit  or  subway,  or  device  pertaining 
thereto.  Said  board  shall  consider  the  location,  arrangement,  and 
operation  of  electric  wires  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  wrhether  used, 
or  to  be  used,  for  electric  lighting,  transmission  of  power,  teleg- 
raphy, telephony,  or  signalling,  with  a  view  to  securing,  as  soon  as 
practicable,  the  construction  of  a  safe  and  convenient  system  of  con- 
duits and  subways,  the  placing  therein  of  all  necessary  electric  wires 
along  the  streets,  avenues,  and  other  public -spaces,  and  the  removal 
of  all  unused  overhead  wires,  and  their  supports.  To  this  end,  the 
board  will,  as  soon  as  practicable,  and  not  later  than  December  first, 

24757 


20 

eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-one,  report  to  the  President,  who  shall 
submit  the  same  to  the  first  session  of  the  Fifty-second  Congress,  as 
follows : 

First.  Recommendations  for  a  complete  system  of  conduits  or  sub- 
ways, with  all  suitable  branches,  connections,  and  appurtenances 
for  the  safe  and  efficient  operation  therein  of  the  necessary  cables 
and  conductors.  Such  recommendations  shall  be  accompanied  b}T 
maps,  detailed  drawings,  and  estimates  of  cost. 

Second.  Opinion  as  to  whether  the  conduits  or  subways  should  be 
built,  owned,  and  operated  by  private  corporations  or  individuals, 
subject  to  public  control,  or  constructed  and  maintained  by  public 
authority  and  leased  to  companies  or  individuals.  If  the  latter, 
recommendation  will  be  made  as  to  the  terms  and  conditions  upon 
which  such  leases  should  be  executed. 

Third.  Also  recommendations  concerning  the  construction,  loca- 
tion, operation,  and  maintenance  of  underground  cables  and  conduct- 
ors, carrying  currents  of  different  intensities,  with  a  view  to  promote 
the  public  safety,  and  to  secure  the  most  convenient  and  efficient  use 
of  such  cables  and  conductors,  and  the  appliances  connected  there- 
with. 

Fourth.  Recommendations  as  to  the  restrictions,  if  any,  which 
should  be  imposed  by  law  upon  the  character  and  intensity  of  electric 
currents  conve^yed  by  conductors  situated  over  or  under  the  public 
streets,  avenues,  and  spaces,  and  used  for  electric  lighting,  transmis- 
sion of  power,  telegraphy,  telephony,  or  signalling. 

Fifth.  Recommendations  respecting  the  regulation  of,  the  arrange- 
ment and  use  of  authorized  overhead  wires. 

To  meet  the  expenses  of  the  said  board,  there  is  hereby  appro- 
priated the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars,  or  so  much  thereof  as  may 
be  necessary:  Provided,  That  the  officer  detailed  from  the  Corps  of 
Engineers  shall  not  receive  any  salary  except  that  due  to  his  rank. 

Extract  from   the  District  appropriation  bill,   18!)1.   approve!   August   ('»,   1890 
(26  Stats.,  p.  310). 

******* 

SEC.  3.  That  any  street  railroad  company  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia authorized  to  run  cars  drawn  by  horses,  Avhich  has  changed  or  may 
change  its  motive  power  on  any  of  its  lines  now  constructed,  to  cable 
or  electricity,  or  change  its  rails  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of 
law,  shall  have  the  right  to  issue  and  sell,  at  the  market  price  thereof, 
stock  of  said  company  to  an  amount  necessary  to  cover  the  cost  of 
making  said  changes,  the  cost  of  said  changes  and  the  amount  of  said 
stock  sold,  together  with  the  price  per  share,  to  be  fully  set  forth, 
under  the  oath  of  the  President  of  said  Company,  and  filed  with  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District.  And  any  company  availing  itself  of 
the  privilges  herein  granted  shall  within  two  years,  wholly  dispense 
with  horses  as  motive  power  on  all  portions  of  its  line  and  substitute 
therefor  the  power  provided  for  in  the  act  making  appropriations  for 
the  expenses  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  March  second, 
eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-nine,  or  pneumatic  or  other  modern 
motive  power  which  shall  be  approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  but  nothing  in  this  act  contained  shall  in  any 
wise  authorize  the  use  of  overhead  appliances:  Provided,  That  if  any 

247f>7 


21 

such  company  operating  a  line  or  lines  of  street  railroad  from  George- 
town or  West  Washington  to  and  beyond  the  Capitol  grounds  shall 
fail  to  substitute  for  horse  power  the  power  herein  provided  for  on 
all  its  lines  within  two  years  from  the  date  of  this  act,  such  company 
shall  forfeit  its  corporate  franchise. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil  expenses  of  the 
Government,  approved  August  30,  1890  (26  Stats.,  p.  31)7). 

For  introducing  electric  lamps  and  wires  into  the  Executive  Man- 
sion and  connecting  the  same  by  underground  cable  with  the  source 
of  electricity,  seven  thousand  seven  hundred  dollars;  and  the  sum 
appropriated  for  the  purchase  of  gas  may  be  applied  to  the  purchase 
of  gas  or  electric  light. 

,  For  electric  lights  for  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  nights,  from 
seven  posts,  at^  forty  cents  per  light  per  night,  one  thousand  and 
twenty-two  dollars. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  and  Arlington  Railway 
Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  February  28,  1891  (26  Stats., 
p.  798). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled.  That  W.  H.  Han- 
dle, D.  C.  Forney,  J.  S.  Lawrence,  Beriah  Wilkins,  C.  G.  Lee.  James 
L.  Barbour,  and  their  associates  and  assigns,  be,  and  they  are  hereby, 
created  a  body  corporate  under  the  name  of  the  Washington  and 
Arlington  Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  with 
authority  to  construct  and  lay  down  a  single  or  double  track  railway, 
with  necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  and  other  mechanical  devices  for 
operating  the  same,  by  horse,  cable,  compressed  air  or  other  power  to 
be  approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  or 
electric  power. 


Provided,  That  said  company  shall  not  operate  any  part  of  its  line 
by  electric  power  with  overhead  wires  within  the  city  limits. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1891  (26  Stats.,  pp.  1069  and  1073). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection, 
on  one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  of  the  cities  of  Washington 
and  Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service  and  necessary  ex- 
tensions, fifty-nine  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That 
no  more  than  fifty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc 
light  burning  every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly 
by  means  of  underground  wires,  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less 
than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropria- 
tion shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may 
exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown:  Provided,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  are  hereby  authorized,  in  their  discretion,  to  enter  into  con- 
tract for  electric  arc  lights,  which  shall  fulfill  the  conditions  above 
specified  for  a  period  of  three  years  from  July  1st,  1891,  at  a  price 
not  to  exceed  fifty  cents  per  lamp  per  night. 
'24757 


22 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  telephone  service/'  pro- 
vides as  follows : 

*  *  *  Provided^  That  the  board  appointed  under  the  pro- 
visions of  the  District  of  Columbia  appropriation  act,  approved 
August  sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety,  to  consider  and  report 
upon  a  system  of  conduits  and  subways  and  kindred  matters,  shall 
in  addition  submit  a  set  of  recommendations  concerning  a  safe  and 
efficient  wiring  of  public  and  private  buildings  for  all  electric  pur- 
poses: Provided  further,  That  until  action  by  Congress  upon  the 
report  of  the* board  appointed  to  consider  the  location,  arrangement, 
and  operation  of  electric  wires  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  pursuant 
to  the  act  approved  August  sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety,  or 
until  April  first,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two,  whichever  shall 
first  occur,  the  Commissioners. of  the  said  District  shall  not  permit 
the  additional  construction  of  more  than  five  miles  of  conduits  or 
subways  in  aggregate  length  for  electric  lighting  purposes,  nor  more 
than  five  miles  of  conduits  or  subways  in  aggregate  length  for  tele- 
phone service ;  this  to  apply  to  all  permits  heretofore  granted  or  here- 
after granted  under  existing  law,  all  such  permits  to  be  revokable  by 
Congress  as  heretofore  provided,  but  not  to  apply  to  necessary  street 
or  house  connections  for  electric  service  nor  to  changes  of  motive 
power  on  street  railways,  in  compliance  with  existing  law. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home 
Railroad  Company,  approved  July  5,  1892  (27  Stats.,  p.  65). 

Provided,  That  horse  power  shall  not  be  used  on  said  line  for 
traction  purposes,  and  that  if  electric  wires  or  cables  are  used  to 
propel  its  cars  over  any  of  the  routes  hereby  authoried  within  the 
limits  of  the  city  of  Washington  the  same  shall  be  placed  under- 
ground. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  District  of  Columbia  Suburoan  Railway 
Company,  approved  July  5,  1892   (27  tSats.,  p.  66). 

SEC.  2.  That  said  company  may  run  public  carriages,  propelled  by 
cable,  electric,  or  other  mechanical  power :  Provided,  That  if  electric 
wires  or  cables  be  used  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington, 
the  wires  shall  be  placed  underground,  and  the  power  used  shall  be 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  said  Commissioners;  but  nothing  in 
this  act  shall  allow  the  use  of  steam  power  or  any  motor  which  shall 
in  its  operation  cause  any  noise  or  other  disturbance  which  in  the 
judgment  of  said  Commissioners  shall  be  inimical  to  the  public  safety 
or  comfort :  Provided 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  July  14,  1892  (27  Stats.,  p.  157). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection, 
on  one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets,  in  the  cities  of  Washington 
and  Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service  and  necessary  exten- 
sions, fifty-nine  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That  not 
more  than  fifty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc 
light  burning  every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated 
wholly  by  means  of  underground  wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be 
of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of 

24757 


this  appropriation  shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of 
wires  that  may  exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the 
cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown. 

Joint  resolution,  approved  July  22,  1892  (27  Stats.,  p.  399). 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  time 
within  which  the  street  railroad  companies  availing  themselves  of 
the  privileges  granted  by  the  act  making  appropriations  to  provide 
for  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  approved  Au- 
gust sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety,  so  far  as  it  extends  to  the 
Metropolitan  Railroad,  is  hereby  extended  for  one  year  from  the  date 
of  the  passage  of  this  act:  Provided,  That  so  fast  as  the  cars  now 
building  are  equipped  with  storage  batteries  they  shall  be  placed  on 
the  road:  And  provided  further,  That  pending  the  change  the 
present  equipment  of  the  road  shall  be  put,  and  kept  and  maintained 
in  good  condition;  and  any  failure  to  comply  with  any  of  the  fore- 
going requirements  as  to  equipment  shall  render  the  said  Metro- 
politan Railway  Company  liable  to  a  line  of  not  exceeding  twenty- 
five  dollars  for  each  day  so  in  default,  to  be  recovered  by  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia,  as  other  fines  are  recovered 
in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  2.  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend  or  repeal  this 
act. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  incorporate  the 
Brightwood  Railwav  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,"  approved  July 
26,  1892  (27  Stats.,  p.  270). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  Amei4ca  in  Congress  assembled,  That  j:he  charter 
granted  to  the  Brightwood  Railway  Company  by  an  act  of  Congress 
approved  October  eighteenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-eight,  be, 
and  the  same  is,  amended  as  follows  : 

u  That  within  six  months  from  the  date  of  the  approval  of  this 
act,  the  said  Brightwood  Railway  Company  shall  equip  and  operate 
its  existing  line  with  the  overhead  trolley  system  of  electric  motive 


*  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Said  branch  line  shall  be  operated  by  the  overhead  trolley  system 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Giving  authority  for  the  erection  of  overhead  wires  for 
the  illumination  of  the  city  of  Washington  during  the  encampment  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  during  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety- 
two,  approved  July  26,  1892  (27  Stat.,  p.  400). 

Whereas,  It  is  proposed  during  the  approaching  reunion  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  to  make  provision  for  the  suitable  illu- 
mination of  the  streets,  avenues  and  public  grounds,  which  illumina- 
tion can  not  be  effected  unless  additional  over-head  wires,  for  electrical 
purposes,  are  temporarily  strung,  and 

Whereas,  The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  pro- 
hibited by  existing  law  from  authorizing  any  overhead  wires  for 
electrical  purposes  to  be  strung  on  or  over  any  street  or  avenue  of  the 
said  city:  Therefore, 

24757 


24 

Resolved  l>y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to  permit  the  Com- 
mittee on  Illumination  of  the  Citizens'  Executive  Committee  for  the 
Entertainment  of  the  Twenty-sixth  National  Encampment  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  to  stretch  suitable  conductors,  with 
sufficient  supports,  wherever  necessary,  for  the  purpose  of  effecting 
the  said  illumination: 

Provided,  That  the  said  conductors  shall  not  be  used  for  the  convey- 
ing of  electrical  currents  after  September  twenty-seventh,  eighteen 
hundred  and  ninety- two.  and  shall,  with  their  supports,  be  fully  and 
entirely  removed  from  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the  said  city  of 
Washington  on  or  before  November  first,  eighteen  hundred  and 
ninety-two :  Provided,  further,  That  the  stretching  and  removing  of 
the  said  wires  shall  be  urder  the  supervision  of  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia,  who  shall  see  that  the  provisions  of  this 
resolution  are  enforced,  that  all  needful  precautions  are  taken  for  the 
protection  of  the  public,  and  that  the  pavement  of  any  street,  avenue 
or  alley  disturbed  is  replaced  in  as  good  condition  as  before  entering 
upon  the  work  herein  authorized : 

Provided,  further,  That  no  expense  or  damage  on  account  of,  or  due 
to  the  stretching,  operation,  or  removing  of  the  said  temporary  over- 
head conductors  shall  be  incurred  by  the  United  States  or  the  District 
of  Columbia. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  and  Great  Falls  Electric 
Railway  Company,  approved  July  29,  1802  (27  Stats.,  p.  326). 

That  the  said  corporation  shall  operate  its  said  road  by  electric 
power,  and  for  this  purpose  it  is  hereby  authorized  to  erect  and  main- 
lain  such  poles  and  aerial  lines  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  proper 
conduct  of  said  power ;  such  lines  to  be  built  in  the  most  perfect  and 
substantial  manner,  Provided.  That  in  order  to  prevent  any  danger 
or  damage  to  the  United  States  telephone  line  between  the  Great 
Falls  of  the  Potomac  and  Washington,  belonging  to  the  Washington 
Aqueduct,  or  to  its  instruments,  from  the  electric  wires  of  said  rail- 
way company,  the  said  company  shall,  at  all  times  and  at  its  own 
expense  remove,  change,  and  protect  said  telephone  line  in  such  man- 
ner as  may  be  directed  by  the  Secretary  of  War. 

******* 

That  the  said  corporation  shall,  at  its  own  expense,  maintain  elec- 
tric lights  along  the  entire  length  of  its  railway  during  the  hours 
tifter  nightfall  that  its  cars  shall  run,  and  at  least  until  twelve  o'clock 
nnd  thirty  minutes  antemeridian,  which  lights  shall  be  located  so  as 
to  light  all  roads  on  and  across  which  it  shall  pass,  and  shall  be  placed 
at  such  points  along  the  proposed  road  as  the  Secretary  of  War  shall 
direct,  and  shall  also  light  Chain  Bridge  in  the  same  manner  and  dur- 
ing the  same  hours. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Maryland  and  Washington   Railway 
Company,  approved  August  1,  1802  (27  Stats.,  p.  341). 

SEC.  2.  That  said  company  may  run  public  carriages  propelled  by 
cable,  electric,  or  other  mechanical  power,  subject  to  the  approval  of 

24757 


25 

the  said  Commissioners,  but  nothing  in  this  act  shall  allow  the  use  of 
steam  power  in  locomotives. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home 
Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  February  13,  1893 
(27  Stats.,  p.  444). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  act  to 
amend  the  charter  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldier's  Home  Eailway 
Company,  approved  April  thirtieth,  anno  Domini  eighteen  hundred 
and  ninety,  is  hereby  amended  by  substituting  the  word  "  five  "  for 
the  word  "  three  "  in  the  last  line  of  said  act. 

******* 

And  in  the  fourth  proviso  by  striking  out  the  word  "  horse  "  and 
inserting  in  lieu  -thereof  the  word  "  steam,"  so  that  the  proviso  will 
read,  "  Provided,  That  steam  power  shall  nob  be  used  on  said  line  for 
traction  purposes,  and  that,  if  electric  wires  or  cables  are  used  to 
propel  its  cars  over  any  of  the  routes  hereby  authorized  within  the 
limits  of  the  city  of  Washington,  the  same  shall  be  placed  under 
ground." 

A  JOINT  RESOLUTION  providing  for  additional  telegraphic  and  electric-light 
facilities  in  the  city  of  Washington  during  the  inaugural  ceremonies  on  the 
fourth  day  of  March,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-three.  Approved,  Febru- 
ary 15,  1893  (27  Stats.,  p.  755). 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit 
the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company  and  tne  United  States  Elec- 
tric Company  to  extend  overhead  wires  into  the  Pension  building  and 
to  such  points  along  the  line  of  parade  as  shall  be  deemed  by  the  chief 
marshal  convenient  for  use  in  connection  with  the  parade" and  other 
inaugural  purposes,  the  said  wires  to  be  taken  down  within  ten  days 
after  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremonies  on  the  fourth  day  of  March, 
eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-three. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  Brightwood  Railway  Company 
of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  February  27,^1893  (27  Stats.,  p.  490). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Bright- 
wood  Eailway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  hereby  au- 
thorized to  construct,  equip,  and  operate,  with  the  overhead  trolley 
system  of  electric  motive  power,  a  branch  line  of  road  and  to  run  its 
cars  thereon  through  and  along  the  following-named  roads  or  streets 
in  the  District  of  Columbia : 

Beginning  at  the  intersection  of  the  Eock  Creek  Church  road  and 
Eichmond  street,  in  the  subdivision  of  Petworth,  and  running  thence 
westerly  along  said  Eichmond  street  to  Brightwood  avenue;  thence 
Southerly  along  the  present  tracks  of  the  said  Brightwood  Eailway 
on  said  Brightwood  avenue,  to  the  intersection  of  Marshall  street  with 
said  Brightwood  avenue;  thence  westerly  along  and  over  said  Mar- 
shall street  to  Kenyon  avenue;  thence  along  said  Kenyon  avenue 
westerly  to  Fourteenth  street. 

24757—08 3 


26 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  the  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1893  (27  Stats.,  p. -544). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection,  on 
one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  in  the  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service  and  necessary  extensions, 
fifty-nine  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That  not  more 
than  fifty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light 
burning  every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by 
means  of  underground  wires;  .and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less 
than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower;  and  no  part  of  this  appro- 
priation shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may 
exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Wash- 
ington and  Georgetown:  Provided  further,  That  the  Commissioners 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  investigate,  ascertain,  and  report  to 
the  first  session  of  the  Ffty-third  Congress  what  deduction  may  be 
made  for  gas  and  electric  lighting  both  for  annual,  five-year,  and  for 
ten-year  contracts,  and  that  they  be  authorized  to  invite  proposals  for 
supplying  said  light  at  reduced  rates;  and  in  this  they  are  not  lim- 
ited to  any  one  system  or  company. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1S93  (27  Stat.,  p.  544). 

That  for  securing  a  better  fulfillment  of  the  intent  of  an  act  entitled 
"An  act  regulating  gas  works,"  approved  June  twenty-third,  eighteen 
hundred  and  seventy-four,  two  additional  laboratories  shall  be  pro- 
vided and  fitted  up  by  the  Washington  Gas  Light  Company,  subject 
to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  shall  be  furnished  with  suitable  apparatus,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
the  said  Commissioners,  at  a  total  cost  not  to  exceed  one  thousand  dol- 
lars, for  inspecting  and  testing  the  illuminating  gas  manufactured 
and  distributed  by  the  said  Washington  Gas  Light  Company  and  the 
gas  meters  used  for  measuring  the  gas  supplied  to  consumers  by  the 
said  Washington  Gas  Light  Company.  One  of  the  said  laboratories 
shall  be  located  in  the  nortlrvvestern  portion  of  the  city  of  Washington 
and  the  other  in  the  southeastern  portion  of  said  city,  and  the  cost  of 
providing  and  fitting  up  the  said  laboratories  shall  be  paid  for  by  the 
said  Washington  Gas  Light  Company.  And  for  securing  the  better 
fulfillment  of  the  intent  of  the  said  act,  a  laboratory  shall  be  pro- 
vided and  fitted  up  by  the  Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company,  subject 
to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  shall  be  furnished  with  suitable  apparatus,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
the  said  Commissioners  at  a  total  cost  not  to  exceed  one  thousand  dol- 
lars, for  inspecting  and  testing  the  illuminating  gas  manufactured 
and  distributed  by  the  said  Washington  Gas  Light  Company  and  the 
gas  meters  used  for  measuring  the  gas  supplied  to  consumers  by  the 
said  Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company:  Provided,  That  the  cost  of 
providing  and  fitting  up  the  said  laboratory  shall  be  paid  by  the  said 
Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company,  and  the  said  Georgetown  Gas  Light 
Company  shall  be  liable  for  such  penalties  for  departures  from  the 
standards  of  illuminating  power  and  purity  of  the  gas  manufactured 
and  distributed  by  the  said  Company  as  are  prescribed  in  the  first 
section  of  the  said  act  entitled  "An  act  regulating  gas  Avorks,"  ap- 
proved June  twenty-third,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-four :  Pro- 

24757 


vided  further,  That  the  provisions  and  penalties  of  the  act  entitled 
"An  act  to  authorize  the  appointment  of  an  inspector  of  plumbing  in 
the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes,"  approved  April 
twenty-third,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two,  are  hereby  extended 
to  include  the  practice  of  the  business  of  gas- fitting  in  the  District  of 
Columbia :  Provided  further,  That  the  Washington  Gas  Light  Com- 
pany and  the  Georgetown  Gas  Light  Company  shall,  at  the  beginning 
of  each  fiscal  year,  in  proportion  to  their  respective  receipts  from 
sales  of  gas  for  the  fiscal  year  immediately  preceding,  provide  in 
advance,  by  depositing  Avith  the  collector  of  taxes  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  a  sum  sufficient  to  pay  the  salary  of  an  inspector  of  gas- 
fitting,  to  be  appointed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  at  one  thousand  dollars  per  annum,  and  also  the  necessary 
additional  expenses  of  maintaining  the  service  of  inspecting  and  test- 
ing illuminating  gas  and  gas  meters,  herein  provided  for,  as  esti- 
mated by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  not  to 
,  exceed  five  hundred  dollars  per  annum  for  each  of  the  said  additional 
laboratories:  Provided  further',  That  the  daily  inspections  prescribed 
in  section  five  of  the  act  entitled  "An  act  regulating  gas  works," 
approved  June  twenty-third,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-four, 
shall  hereafter  be  made  at  any  time  after  twelve  o'clock  noon  and 
before  twelve  o'clock  midnight,  in  the  discretion  of  the  inspector  of 
gas  and  meters:  Provided  further,  That  the  provisions  of  sections 
seven  and  eight  of  the  act  entitled  "An  act  regulating  gas  works," 
approved  June  twenty-third,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-four, 
shall  hereafter  apply  to  all  gas  meters  from  which  the  heads  shall 
have  been  removed  by  any  gas  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
for  the  purpose  of  examining  and  repairing  the  same,  and  no  gas 
meter  from  which  the  head  shall  have  been  removed  shall  be  again 
placed  in  service  by  any  gas  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
without 'having  been  duly  inspected,  approved,  and  sealed  as -pro- 
vided for  in  the  said  act  and  for  such  inspection  of  repaired  meters  a 
fee  of  twenty  cents  each  shall  be  paid:  Provided  further,  That  each 
gas  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall,  at  its'sole  and  entire 
expense,  make  reasonable  extensions  of  its  gas  mains  whenever  the 
said  extensions  shall  be  necessary  for  maintaining  street  lamps  for 
the  public  safety  and  comfort,  and  the  said  Commissioners  shall  regu- 
late the  location  and  depth  of  the  said  gas  mains  in  the  streets,  ave- 
nues, roads,  alleys,  and  spaces  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  Any  fail- 
ure to  comply  with  this  provision  shall  be  reported  to  Congress  by 
the  Commissioners. 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection,  on 
one  or  more  of  the  rjrincipal  streets  in  the  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service,  and  necessary  extensions, 
fifty-nine  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That  not  more 
than  fifty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light  burn- 
ing every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by  means 
of  underground  wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than 
one  thousand  actual  candle  power,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation 
shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on 
or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown:  Provided  further*  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  shall  investigate,  ascertain,  and  report  to  the  first 

24757 


28 

session  of  the  Fifty-third  Congress  what  deduction  may  be  made  for 
gas  and  electric  lighting,  both  for  annual,  five-year,  and  for  ten-year 
contracts,  and  that  they  be  authorized  to  invite  proposals  for  supply- 
ing said  light  at  reduced  rates ;  and  in  this  they  are  not  limited  to  any 
one  system  or  company. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  authorize  the  Metropolitan  Railroad  Company  to  change 
its  motive  power  for  the  propulsion  of  the  cars  of  said  company,  approved 
August  2,  1894  (28  Stats.,  p.  217). 

SEC.  2.  That  the  said  Metropolitan  Railroad  Company  be,  and  the 
same  is  hereby,  authorized,  empowered,  and  required  to  equip  and 
operate  the  lines  of  its  cars  upon  and  along  all  the  streets  and  ave- 
nues of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown,  within  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  where  the  lines  of  its  road  or  any  part  thereof  are 
now  laid  and  operated,  and  as  hereinafter  provided,  with  an  under- 
ground electric  system  for  propulsion  of  such  cars:  *  *  * 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  the  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  August  7,  1894  (28  Stats.,  pp.  252  and  256). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection, 
on  one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  in  the  cities  of  Washington 
and  Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service,  and  necessary  exten- 
sions, forty-seven  thousand  six  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That  not 
more  than  forty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc 
light  burning  every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly 
by  means  of  underground  wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not 
less  than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appro- 
priation shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may 
exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Wash- 
ington and  Georgetown. 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  Telephone  Service,"  pro- 
vides as  follows: 

Telegraph  and  telephone  service.  *  *  *  And  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  said  District  are  hereby  empowered  to  authorize  the 
erection  and  use  of  telephone  poles  in  the  public  alleys  of  the  city 
of  Washington:  Provided,  however,  That  all  telephone  poles  so 
erected  shall  be  subject  to  use  by  the  said  District  for  the  stringing 
of  wires  thereon  to  be  used  for  fire-alarm  and  police  purposes  with- 
out any  charge  therefor  to  the  said  District,  such  privileges  as  may 
be  granted  hereunder  to  be  revokable  at  the  will  of  Congress  with- 
out compensation. 

Extract  from  an. act  to  authorize  the  Washington,  Alexandria  and  Mount  Ver- 
non  Electric  Railway  Company  to  extend  its  line  of  road  into  and  within  the 
District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  August  23,  1894  (28 
Stats.,  p.  494). 

SEC.  11.  That  the  said  company  shall  run  street  railway  cars  pro- 
pelled by  underground  cable  or  underground  electric  power. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  incorporate  the  Mary- 
land and  Washington  Railway  Company,"  approved  March  2,1895  (28  Stats., 
p.  713). 

And  the  said  company  shall  be  liable  for  any  damage  to  pipes  or 
other  underground  constructions,  caused  by  the  passage  of  its  cars 

24757 


29 

over  the  same  or  by  electric  currents  used  in  the  propulsion  of  its 
cars. 

******* 

Provided,  That  nothing  in  this  Act  shall  operate  to  authorize  the 
erection  of  overhead  wires  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  authorize  the  Washington  and  Marlboro  Electric  Rail- 
way Company,  of  Maryland,  to  extend  its  line  of  road  into  and  within  the 
District  of  Columbia,  approved  March  2,  1895  (28  Stats.,  p.  717). 

SEC.  6.  That  if  the  said  railway  be  operated  by  overhead  wires  the 
corporation  shall  furnish  and  maintain  such  lights  along  its  line  as 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  direct,  without 
cost  to  the  District  of  Columbia ;  but  no  overhead  wires  shall  be  con- 
structed or  used  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

******* 

SEC.  12.  That  the  said  company  may  run  public  carriages  pro- 
pelled by  cable,  electric,  or  other  mechanical  power;  but  nothing  in 
this  Act  shall  allow  the  use  of  steam  power  in  locomotives. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Capital  Railway  Company,  approved 
March  2,  1895  (28  Stats.,  p.  721). 

SEC.  6.  That  if  the  said  railway  be  operated  by  overhead  wires,  the 
corporation  shall  furnish  and  maintain  such  lights  along  its  line  as 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  direct,  without 
cost  to  the  District  of  Columbia;  but  no  overhead  wires  shall  be 
constructed  or  used  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

*  ****** 

SEC.  12.  That  the  said  company  may  run  public  carriages  propelled 
by  cable,  electric,  or  other  mechanical  power;  but  nothing  in  this  Act 
shall  allow  the  use  of  steam  power  in  locomotives,  or  of  overhead  trol- 
leys within  the  limits  of  the  city :  Provided,  That  if  electric  power  by 
trolley  be  used,  that  the  said  company  shall  be  liable  for  all  damages 
made  thereby  to  subsurface  metal  pipes,  and  to  other  public  and  pri- 
vate property. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  the  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  2,  1895  (28  Stats.,  p.  751). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  expenses  of  inspection,  on 
one  or  more  of  the  principal  streets  in  the  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown,  maintaining  existing  service  and  necessary  extensions, 
forty-seven  thousand  six  hundred  dollars:  Provided,  That  not  more 
than  forty  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light  burn- 
ing every  night  from  sunset  to  sunrise,  and  operated  Avholty  by  means 
of  underground  wires,  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one 
thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall 
be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or 
over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  cities  of  Washington,  and 
Georgetown. 

24757 


30 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  incorporate  the  Capital 
Railway  Company,"  approved  May  28,  1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  188). 

SEC.  2.  That  the  motive  power  to  be  used  on  the  lines  in  this  Act 
specified  shall  be  the  underground  electric  system  within  the  city  of 
Washington  and  the  overhead  trolley  system  outside  the  city  of 
Washington.  For  crossing  the  Xavy-Yard  bridge  the  said  company 
may,  in  the  discretion  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia,  use  either  horse  powrer  or  the  underground  electric  system 
to  propel  its  cars;  and  the  said  company  shall  have  the  privilege  of 
carrying  an  electric  current  across  the  said  Navy- Yard  bridge  in  such 
manner  as  the  said  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
prescribe. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  incorporate  the  Wash- 
ington and  Great  Falls  Electric  Railway  Company,"  approved  June  3,  1896 
(29  Stats.,  p.  248). 

That  the  said  corporation  shall  operate  its  said  road  by  electric 
powTer,  and  for  this  purpose  it  is  hereby  authorized  to  erect  and 
maintain  such  poles  and  aerial  lines  as  may  be  necessary  for  the 
proper  conduct  of  said  power ;  such  lines  to  be  built  in  the  most  per- 
fect and  substantial  manner:  Provided,  That  in  order  to  prevent  any 
danger  or  damage  to  the  United  States  telephone  line  between  the 
Great  Falls  of  the  Potomac  and  Washington,  belonging  to  the  Wash- 
ington Aqueduct,  or  to  its  instruments,  from  the  electric  wires  of 
said  railway  company,  the  said  company  shall,  at  all  times  and 
at  its  own  expense  remove,  change,  and  protect  said  telephone  line 
in  such  manner  as  mav  be  directed  by  the  Secretary  of  War. 


That  the  said  corporation  shall,  at  its  own  expense,  maintain 
electric  lights  during  the  hours  after  nightfall  that  its  cars  shall 
run,  and  at  least  until  twelve  o'clock  antemeridian,  which  lights  shall 
be  located  so  as  to  light  all  roads  on  and  across  which  the  railway  shall 
pass  and  such  other  points  along  the  proposed  route  as  the  Secretary 
of  War  shall  direct. 

AN  ACT  Relating  to  the  sale  of  gas  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June 
6,  1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  251). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Washing- 
ton Gaslight  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  authorized  to 
charge  and  collect,  after  the  first  day  of  July,  eighteen  hundred  and 
ninety-six,  for  illuminating  gas  furnished  to  and  paid  for  by  private 
consumers  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  at  the  rate  of  not  exceeding 
one  dollar  ard  ten  cents  per  thousand  cubic  feet,  until  the  first  day 
of  July,  nineteen  hundred  and  one,  after  which  last-named  date  the 
rate  shall  not  exceed  one  dollar  per  thousand  cubic  feet;  and  that 
after  the  first  day  of  July,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  the 
Washington  Gaslight  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
furnish  to  the  United  States  Government  and  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia gas  at  the  rate  of  one  dollar  per  thousand  cubic  feet :  Provided, 
That  if  consumers  other  than  the  Government  shall  not  pay  monthly 
any  gas  bill  within  ten  days  after  the  same  shall  have  been  presented, 
said  company  may  charge  and  collect  from  said  consumer  so  failing 

24757 


31 

to  pay  said  bill  as  aforesaid  one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  per 
thousand  cubic  feet  for  the  gas  furnished  to  said  consumer  during 
said  mpnth. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  Georgetown  Gaslight  Company,  doing  business  in 
that  part  of  the  District  of  Columbia  formerly  known  as  George- 
town, is  authorized  to  charge  and  collect,  after  the  first  day  of  July, 
eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  for  illuminating  gas  furnished  to, 
and  paid  for,  by  private  consumers  in  that  part  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  at  the  rate  of  not  exceeding  one  dollar  and  thirty-five  cents 
per  thousand  cubic  feet,  until  the  first  day  of  July,  nineteen  hundred 
and  one,  after  which  last-named  date  the  rate  shall  not  exceed  one 
dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  per  thousand  cubic  feet ;  and  that  after  the 
first  day  of  July,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  the  said  George- 
town Gaslight  Company  shall  furnish  to  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment and  the  District  of  Columbia  gas  at  the  rate  of  one  dollar  and 
twenty-five  cents  per  thousand  cubic  feet:  Provided,  That  if  con- 
sumers, other  than  the  Government,  shall  not  pay  monthly  any  gas 
bill  within  ten  days  after  the  same  shall  have  been  presented,  said 
company  may  charge  and  collect  from  said  consumer  so  failing  to  pay 
said  bill  as  aforesaid  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  per  thousand  cubic  feet 
for  the  gas  furnished  said  consumer  during  said  month. 

SEC.  3.  That  section  one  of  an  Act  entitled  "An  Act  regulating 
gas  works,"  approved  June  twenty -third,  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy-four,  is  amended  so  as  to  read  as  follows :  "  That  from  and 
after  the  thirtieth  day  of  June,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  the 
illuminating  power  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any  gaslight  company, 
person,  or  persors  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  equal  to 
twenty-five  candles  by  the  Bunsen  photometer,  using  the  Bray  slit 
union  burner  numbered  seven,  consuming  five  cubic  feet  of  gas  per 
hour;  and  such  gas  shall  not  contain  more  than  twenty  grains  of 
sulphur  in  any  form  in  one  hundred  cubic  feet,  nor  more  than  five 
grains  of  ammonia  in  any  form  in  one  hundred  cubic  feet,  and  shall 
be  free  of  the  impurity  known  as  '  sulphureted  hydrogen,'  said  im- 
purity to  be  determined  by  passing  the  gas  through  a  glass  vessel  con- 
taining strips  of  bibulous  paper  moistened  with  a  solution  of  the 
acetate  of  lead,  and  if  any  discoloration  of  the  test  paper  is  found  to 
have  taken  place  this  is  to  be  held  conclusive  as  to  the  presence  of 
sulphureted  hydrogen  in  the  gas.  When  the  illuminating  gas  sup- 
plied by  any  company,  person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
shall  at  any  one  time  be  of  less  illuminating  power  or  of  less  purity 
than  according  to  the  standard  just  heretofore  given,  it  shall  be  so 
reported  by  the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters  to  the  company,  person, 
or  persons  supplying  the  same,  who  shall  be  subject  to  a  penalty  of 
one  hundred  dollars,  to  be  recovered  before  the  proper  tribunal  and 
paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  District  of  Columbia  aforesaid  for  each 
and  every  clay  during  Avhich  such  violation  shall  continue :  Provided, 
however.  That  if  it  shall  appear  that  such  deviation  from  the  above- 
named  standards  could  not  have  been  prevented  by  ordinary  care  and 
prudence,  but  was  occasioned  by  some  unavoidable  causes,  then  the 
said  penalty  shall  not  be  enforced." 

SEC.  4.  That  any  gas  company  or  person  placing  a  gas  meter  in 
service  in  the  District  .of  Columbia  that  has  not  been  inspected, 
proved,  and  sealed,  as  provided  for  by  the  Act  of  March  third, 

24757 


32 

eighteen  hundred  and  seventy- three,  entitled  "4^n  Act  making  ap- 
propriations for  the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  eighteen  hundred 
and  ninety- four,  and  for  other  purposes,"  for  each  and  every  such 
violation  of  said  Act  shall  be  subject  to  a  penalty  of  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, to  be  recovered  before  the  proper  tribunal  of  the  District  of 
Columbia :  Provided,  That  if  the  United  States  Inspector  of  Gas  and 
Meters  is  unable  through  press  of  business,  or  any  accidental  cause, 
to  test  and  inspect  and  seal  meters,  proposed  to  be  set,  then  the  com- 
pany shall  be  at  liberty  to  place  an  unsealed  gas  meter  on  any  prem- 
ises, the  same  to  be  replaced  by  a  sealed  meter  as  soon  as  sealed  meters 
can  be  procured  from  the  inspector,  not  later  than  forty-eight  hours. 

SEC.  5.  That  neither  the  Washington  Gaslight  Company  nor  the 
Georgetown  Gaslight  Company  shall  hereafter  issue  any  greater  num- 
ber of  shares  of  stock  than  shall  be  equal  to  the  actual  cash  value  of 
said  plants  and  necessary  cost  of  the  construction  of  future  exten- 
sions or  future  enlargement  of  plants,  which  cash  value  and  cost  of 
extensions  shall  first  be  ascertained  and  authorized  upon  petition 
therefor  to  the  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  under  such 
regulations  as  the  chief  justice  and  the  justices  thereof  shall  pre- 
scribe ;  also  if  either  of  the  said  corporations  shall  desire  hereafter  to 
issue  bonds  upon  their  property,  secured  by  mortgage  or  otherwise, 
upon  petition  therefor  to  said  court,  setting  forth  the  necessity  there- 
of and  the  amount  of  stock  issued  and  outstanding,  it  may  and  shall 
be  lawful  for  said  court,  or  the  chief  justice  and  justices  thereof,  as 
the  case  may  be,  or  one  of  them,  upon  public  notice,  to  be  prescribed 
by  the  rules  of  said  court,  to  permit  the  issuance  of  such  bonds  and 
mortgage  as  desired :  Provided,  That  the  amount  of  stock  and  bonds 
issued  shall  not  exceed  the  actual  cash  value  of  said  plants  and  the 
cost  of  such  extensidns  or  enlargement  of  plants:  And  provided  fur- 
ther, That  the  Washington  Gaslight  Company  is  hereby  authorized 
to  issue  such  additional  amount  of  capital  stock  as  will  provide  for 
the  conversion  into  such  stock  of  its  outstanding  certificates  of  in- 
debtedness, which  conversion  of  sakl  certificates  is  hereby  authorized 
to  an  amount  not  exceeding  six  hundred  thousand  dollars. 

SEC.  6.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  authorize  the  Baltimore  and  Washington  Transit  Corn- 
Pany,  of  Maryland,  to  enter  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  8, 
1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  264). 

SEC.  4.  That  the  said  Baltimore  and  Washington  Transit  Company 
shall  be  empowered  to  construct,  maintain,  equip,  and  operate  a 
single  or  double  track  street  railway  over  the  said  line,  with  all 
necessary  buildings,  switches,  machinery,  appliances,  appurtenances, 
and  other  devices  necessary  to  operate  the  same  by  cable,  electricity, 
compressed  air,  storage  battery,  or  other  motive  power,  to  be  ap- 
proved by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  :  Provided, 
That  the  right  of  said  company  to  use  an  overhead  single  trolley 
on  a  street  or  part  of  a  street  shall  cease  six  months  after  the  date  of 
the  approval  of  an  Act  of  Congress  appropriating  money  for  or 
otherwise  authorizing  the  paving  of  the  roadway  of  such  street  or 
part  of  street,  except  in  connection  with  continuous  track  rails: 

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And  provided  further,  That  the  right  of  said  company  to  use  an 
overhead  single  trolley  in  any  public  space  in  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia, except  in  connection  with  continuous  track  rails,  shall  in  any 
event  cease  on  July  first,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-nine.  * 
Said  company  shall  be  liable  for  any  damage  to  pipes  or  other  under- 
ground constructions  caused  by  the  passage  of  its  cars  over  the  same, 
or  by  electric  current  used  in  the  propulsion  of  its  cars. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  extend  the  routes  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home 
Railway  Company,  and  of  the  Belt  Railway  Company,  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  June  10,  1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  318). 

In  the  event  that  the  said  compressed-air  motors  shall  not  be  ap- 
proved as  herein  provided  for,  then  within  eighteen  months  from 
the  passage  of  this  Act  the  said  companies,  respectively,  shall  con- 
struct and  put  into  full  operation  on  all  their  lines  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington the  underground  electric  system.  *  *  But  whenever 
such  trenches  or  excavations  shall  interfere  with  any  sewer,  gas,  or 
water  pipes,  or  any  subways  or  conduits,  or  any  public  work  of  the 
kind  which  has  been  ordered  by  the  Commissioners,  then  the  expense 
necessary  to  change  such  underground  construction  shall  be  borne 
by  the  said  railway  company  making  such  trench  or  excavation. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  June  11,  1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  396). 

And  provided  further,  That  the  whole  cost  of  maintaining  and 
keeping  in  good  order  the  laboratory  and  apparatus  in  the  office  of 
the  inspector  of  gas  and  meters  shall  hereafter  be  paid  by  the  Wash- 
ington Gas-light  Company. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  June  11,  1896  (29  Stats.,  p.  406). 

For  electric  arc  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection,  in  those 
streets'  now  lighted  with  electric  arc  lights,  in  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton, and  for  necessary  extensions  of  such  service,  fifty  thousand  dol- 
lars: Provided,  That  not  more  than  thirty  cents  per  night  shall  be 
paid  for  any  electric  arc  light  burning  from  forty-five  minutes  after 
sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by 
means  of  underground  wires;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less 
than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropria- 
tion shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may 
exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton :  Provided,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
may,  under  such  reasonable  restrictions  as  they  may  prescribe,  author- 
ize any  existing  electric  light  company,  having  overhead  wires,  to 
maintain  and  use  for  a  period  of  eight  months,  and  no  longer,  its 
existing  poles  and  overhead  wires  west  of  «Rock  Creek,  in  places  out- 
side of  the  existing  fire  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington,  and  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  and  any  such  overhead  wire  system  may  be 
extended  west  of  Rock  Creek,  and  outside  of  said  fire  limits,  to  con- 
tinue only  for  said  period  of  eight  months,  and  at  the  end  of  said 
period  all  right  or  authority  hereby  conferred  shall  cease. 

And  the  said  Commissioners  may  also  authorize  any  such  existing 
electric  light  company  to  construct  and  use,  under  such  regulations 

24757 


34 

as  the  Commissioners  may  fix,  conduits  for  the  reception  of  existing 
overhead  wires  within  the  territory  formerly  known  as  Georgetown, 
and  to  extend  the  same  by  an  aggregate  of  not  more  than  one  and 
one-fourth  miles  of  conduit  in  the  same  territory.  And  the  United 
States  Electric  Lighting  Company  may  extend  its  underground  con- 
duits and  wires  east  of  Rock  Creek,  and  within  the  said  fire  limits  to 
Mount  Pleasant,  and  Washington,  and  Columbia  Heights,  under 
such  regulations  as  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
may  prescribe. 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Telephone  and  Telegraph  Service,"  pro- 
vides as  follows: 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  are  hereby  directed  to  report 
to  Congress,  at  its  next  regular  session,  what  charges  are  made  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  to  the  public  and  to  the  Government  for  the 
use  of  telephones,  and  the  relative  charges  made  for  the  use  of  tele- 
phones in  other  cities,  operated  by  underground  and  overhead  wires. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  the  sundry  civil  expenses  of  the 
Government,  approved  June  11,  1896   (29  Stats.,  p.  440). 

For  electric  lights,  for  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  nights,  from 
seven  posts,  at  twenty  cents  per  light  per  night,  on  grounds  south  of 
Executive  Mansion,  five  hundred  and  eleven  dollars. 

For  electric  lights,  for  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  nights,  for  not 
exceeding  thirty-two  posts,  in  Lafayette,  Franklin,  Judiciary,  and 
Lincoln  parks,  at  twenty-eight  cents  per  light  per  night,  three  thou- 
sand two  hundred  and  seventy  dollars  and  forty  cents:  Provided, 
That  all  wires  shall  be  placed  underground  and  that  the  conduits, 
wires,  lampposts  complete  shall  be  furnished  by  the  electric  light 
company  without  expense  to  the  United  States,  and  that  twenty- 
eight  cents  per  lamp  per  night  shall  cover  the  entire  cost  to  the 
United  States  of  lighting  and  maintaining,  in  good  order,  each  elec- 
tric light  in  the  parks  mentioned. 

Extract   from   an   act   making  appropriations  for   expenses  of   the   District   of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1897  (29  Stats.,  pp.  673  and  678). 

For  electric  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection,  in  those  streets 
now  lighted  with  electric  arc  lights  in  the  city  of  Washington,  fifty- 
five  thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  not  more  than  twenty-five 
cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  lamp  burning  from 
forty-five  minutes  after  sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise 
and  operated  wholly  by  means  of  underground  wires;  and  each  arc 
light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and 
no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall  be  used  for  electric  lighting  by 
means  of  wires  that  may  ex^st  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues 
of  the  city  of  Washington.  Until  Congress  shall  provide  for  a  con- 
duit system  it  shall  be  unlawful  to  lay  conduits  or  erect  overhead 
wires  for  electric  lighting  purposes  in  any  road,  street,  avenue,  high- 
way, park,  or  reservation  except  as  hereafter  specially  authorized 
by  law:  Provided,  however,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District 
of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to  issue  permits  for  house  connec- 
tions, with  conduits  and  overhead  wires  now  existing  adjacent  to  the 
premises  with  which  such  connection  is  to  be  made,  and  also  permits 

24757 


35 

for  public-lighting  connections  with  conduits  already  in  the  portion 
of  the  street  proposed  to  be  lighted.  And  nothing  herein  contained 
shall  be  construed  to  affect  in  any  way  any  pending  legislation  involv- 
ing the  validity  or  invalidity  or  legality  of  the  construction  of  any 
conduits  made  since  June  eighteenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety- 
six,  nor  to  prevent  the  United  States  Electric  Lighting  Company 
from  extending  conduits  into  Columbia  Heights,  \Vashiiigton, 
Heights,  and  Mount  Pleasant,  within  the  fire  limits,  as  specifically 
provided  in  the  act  of  June  eleventh,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety- 
six,  making  appropriations  for  the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  ;  and  the  existing  overhead  wires  of  the  Potomac 
Electric  Power  Company  west  of  Rock  Creek  and  outside  of  the  fire 
limits  are  hereby  authorized  to  be  maintained  for  a  period  of  one  year 
from  the  passage  of  this  act  and  no  longer. 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  Telephone  Service,"  pro- 
vides as  follows: 

For  extension  of  the  fire-alarm  telegraph,  including  new  boxes,  pur- 
chase and  erection  of  the  necessary  poles  with  cross  arms,  insulators, 
pins,  and  braces,  wire  for  extension  of  lines,  and  extra  labor  for 
stringing  the  wire,  seven  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided '. 
That  wherever  there  are  telegraph  or  telephone  poles,  or  telephone 
conduits,  available  for  the  use  of  the  said  fire  alarm  telegraph,  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to 
make  arrangements  for  the  use  of  such  poles  or  conduits  without 
expense  to  the  said  District;  and  the  authority  granted  to  the  said 
Commissioners  in  the  District  of  Columbia  appropriation  act,  ap- 
proved August  seventh,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety- four,  to  author- 
ize the  erection  and  use  of  telephone  poles  in  the  alleys  of  the  city  of 
Washington  shall  be  limited  as  follows :  Hereafter  no  wire  shall  be 
strung  on  any  alley  pole  at  a  height  of  less  than  fifty  feet  from  the 
ground  at  the  point  of  attachment  to  said  pole;  temporary  permits 
may  be  granted  by  said  Commissioners  to  string  wires  from  cable 
poles,  or  from  existing  overhead  trunk  lines,  to  poles  in,  or  to  be 
erected  «in,  alleys,  and  from  alley  poles  in  one  square  to  alley  poles,  or 
house-top  fixtures,  in  another  square  for  the  purpose  of  making  nec- 
essary house  connections  from  all  cable  poles  and  existing  overhead 
trunk  lines  within  the  District^ of  Columbia;  such  house  connection 
to  be  made  from  the  cable  poles  or  overhead  trunk  lines  nearest  the 
subscriber.  Nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  deemed  to  authorize 
the  erection  of  any  additional  pole  or  poles  upon  any  street,  avenue, 
or  public  reservation  within  the  said  city ;  and  such  privileges  as  may 
be  granted  hereunder  to  be  revokable  at  the  will  of  Congress  without 
compensation. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil   expenses  of  the 
Government,  approved  June  4,  1897  (30  Stats.,  p.  41). 

Until  Congress  shall  provide  for  a  conduit  system  it  shall  be  un- 
lawful to  lay  conduits  or  erect  overhead  wires  for  electric  lighting 
purposes  in  any  road,  street,  avenue,  highway,  park,  or  reservation, 
except  as  hereafter  specifically  authorized  by  law:  Provided,  how- 
ever, That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby 
authorized  to  issue  permits  for  house  connections  with  conduits  and 

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36 

overhead  wires  now  existing  adjacent  to  'the  premises  with  which 
such  connection  is  to  be  made;  and  also  permits  for  public  lighting 
connections  with  conduits  already  in  the  portion  of  the  street  pro- 
posed to  be  lighted.  And  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  con- 
strued to  affect  in  any  way  any  pending  litigation  involving  the 
validity  or  invalidity  or  legality  of  the  construction  of  any  conduits 
made  since  June  eighteenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  nor 
to  prevent  the  United  States  Electric  Lighting  Company  from  ex- 
tending conduits  into  Columbia  Heights,  Washington  Heights,  and 
Mount  Pleasant  within  the  fire  limits  as  specifically  provided  in 
the  act  of  June  eleventh,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  making 
appropriations  for  the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the  District  of 
Columbia;  and  the  existing  overhead  wires  of  the  Potomac  Electric 
Power  Company  west  of  Rock  Creek  and  outside  the  fire  limits  are 
hereby  authorized  to  be  maintained  for  a  period  of  one  year  from  the 
passage  of  this  act  and  no  longer. 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Authorizing  the  Public  Printer  to  use  certain  Govern- 
ment telegraph  poles.  Approved  March  18,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  736). 

That  the  Public  Printer  be,  and  he  is  hereby,  authorized  to  place 
one  six-pin  arm  on  each  of  eleven  poles  now  erected  on  North 
Capitol  street,  between  G  and  B  streets,  and  to  string  thereon  six 
telephone  wires  for  use  between  the  Government  Printing  Office  and 
the  United  States  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives:  Provided, 
That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  authorize  the  erection  of  any 
additional  pole. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  authorize  the  Washington  and  Glen  Echo  Railroad  Com- 
pany to  obtain  a  right  of  way  and  construct  tracks  into  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia six  hundred  feet,  approved  May  7,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  390). 

said  corporation  to  use  electric  motive  power  in  pro- 
pelling, its  cars. 

AN  ACT  To  amend  the  charter  of  the  Capital  Railway  Company.  Approved, 
June  15,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  470). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled.  That  the  Capital 
Railway  Company  is  hereby  authorized  to  install  and  use  the  double 
overhead  trolley  system  on  the  Navy- Yard  Bridge  for  the  purpose  of 
propelling  its  cars  across  the  same,  the  speed  on  the  bridge  not  to 
exceed  the  rate  of  three  and  a  half  miles  an  hour  and  the  double 
trolley  wires  to  be  protected  by  a  wooden  trough  and  thoroughly 
insulated  from  said  bridge;  details  of  construction  to  be  subject  to 
the  approval  of  the  District  Commissioners. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  time  granted  the  'Capital  Railway  -Company  to 
construct  its  road  by  Act  approved  May  twenty-eighth,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  ninety-six,  is  hereby  extended  one  year  from  the  approval  of 
this  Act,  and  if  the  underground  system  now  used  by  the  company  is 
finally  rejected,  it  is  authorized  to  install  an  underground  system 
essentially  similar  to  that  used  by  the  Metropolitan  Railway  Company. 

SEC.  3.*  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

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37 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  East  Washington  Heights  Traction 
Railroad  Company  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  IS,  1898  (30 
Stats.,  p.  470). 

SEC.  7.  That  it  shall  also  be  lawful  for  said  corporation,  its  suc- 
cessors or  assigns,  to  erect  and  maintain,  on  private  grounds,  at  such 
convenient  and  suitable  points  along  its  lines  as  may  seem  most  de- 
sirable to  the  board  of  directors  of  the  said  corporation,  and  subject 
to  the  approval  of  the  said  Commissioners,  an  engine  house  or 
houses,  boiler  house,  and  all  other  buildings  necessary  for  the  suc- 
cessful operation  of  the  said  -railroad. 

*****  *  * 

SEC.  9.  That  the  said  company  may  run  its  cars  by  the  overhead- 
trolley  electric  system,  or  such  other  electric  or  mechanical  system  as 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  approve.  Steam 
power  shall  not  be  used:  Provided,  That  if  electric  power  by  trolley 
be  used  a  return  wire  similar  in  capacity  and  insulation  to  the  feed 
wire  shall  be  provided,  and  each  car  shall  be  provided  with  a  double 
trolley,  and  no  pole  of  any  dynamo  furnishing  power  to  the  railway 
shall  be  connected  with  the  earth. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  define  the  rights  of  purchasers  of  the  Belt  Railway,  and 
for  other  purposes,  approved  June  24,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  488). 

And  within  one  year  from  the  ratification  by  the  court  of  such 
sale  the  existing  railroad  company  purchasing  the  said  Belt  Railway, 
or  the  corporation  created  and  operating  hereunder,  shall,  under  the 
supervision  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  con- 
struct and  put  into  full  operation  on  the  entire  line  of  said  railway 
as  now  constructed  an  underground  electric  system  similar  to  the  one 
now  in  use  by  the  Metropolitan  Railroad  Company,  upon  plans  to 
be  submitted  to  and  approved  by  the  said  Commissioners. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  compel  street  railway  companies  in  the  District  of 
Columbia  to  remove  abandoned  tracks,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved 
June  25,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  489). 

SEC.  2.  That  on  and  after  one  year  from  the  passage  of  this  Act  it 
shall  be  unlawful  for  any  street  railway  company  operating  its  sys- 
tem or  parts  of  its  system  over  any  portion  of  the  underground  elec- 
tric lines  owned  and  operated  by  another  street  railway  company  in 
the  city  of  Washington  to  continue  such  operation  or  to  enter  into 
reciprocal  trackage  relations  with  any  other  company,  as  provided 
for  under  existing  law,  unless  its  motive  power  for  the  propulsion  of 
its  cars  shall  be  the  same  as  that  of  the  company  whose  tracks  are 
used  or  to  be  used.  For  every  violation  of  this  Act  the  company  vio- 
lating it  shall  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  ten  dollars  for  every  car  operated 
in  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  said  'fine  to  be  collected  and 
applied  in  the  same  manner  as  is  provided  by  existing  laws  in  respect 
of  other  fines  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home 
Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  Maryland  and  Washing- 
ton Railway  Company,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  June  27,  1898  (30 
Stats.,  p.  490). 

SEC.  2.  That  the  said  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home  Railway 
Company,  under  the  supervision  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District 

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38 

of  Columbia,  shall  fully  equip  all  its  lines  now  owned  and  operated 
within  the  city  of  Washington  and  also  the  North  Capitol  street  line 
from  the  intersection  of  G  street  north  and  New  Jersey  avenue  to  T 
street  north  with  an  underground  electric  system  essentially  similar 
to  the  underground  system  now  in  use  by  the  Metropolitan  Railroad 
Company  in  said  city,  upon  plans  to  be  submitted  to  and  approved 
by  the  said  Commissioners,  and  shall  have  its  cars  regularly  running 
by  said  system  within  twelve  months  from  the  passage  of  this  Act: 
Provided,  That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  construed  as 
authorizing  or  permitting  said  company  to  use  their  conduits  or 
cables  for  electrical  conductors  of  any  character  whatever  for  the 
purpose  of  electric  lighting  or  power,  except  such  as  may  be  neces- 
sary for  the  lighting  and  propelling  of  the  cars  and  other  machinery 
of  such  road  and  the  power  house  of  said  company,  or  other  property 
owned  or  acquired  by  said  company  adjacent  to  the  lines  of  the  road 
and  necessary  for  the  operation  of  said  road:  Provided*  however, 
That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby 
authorized  to  permit  street  railway  companies  using  the  underground 
electric  system  to  construct  conduits  not  exceeding  five  blocks  in 
length  to  connect  their  existing  conduits  for  the  purpose  of  conveying 
electric  current  to  be  used  for  street  railway  purposes  only :  And 
provided  further.  That  before  permits  shall  be  issued  to  begin  such 
work  all  taxes  and  special  assessments  due  and  unpaid  to  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  and  all  indebtedness  due  the  employees  for  labor, 
or  due  others  for  coal,  feed,  horseshoes,  and  other  supplies,  contracted 
for  by  the  receiver  of  the  said  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home  Rail- 
way, duly  appointed  by  the  court,  and  used  on  behalf  and  for  the 
benefit  of  said  company,  during  such  receivership,  and  to  be  approved 
by  the  court  appointing  such  receiver,  shall  first  be  paid:  Provided, 
That  in  case  of  any  lines  purchased  or  leased  by  said  Eckington  and 
Soldiers'  Home  Railway  Company,  such  lines  within  the  city  of 
Washington  shall  be  fully  equipped  with  said  underground  electric 
system  within  twelve  months  from  the  completion  of  such  purchase 
or  lease,  and  the  North  Capital  street  branch  shall  be  completed  with 
the  underground  s}^stem  to  the  Soldiers'  Home  within  twelve  months 
from  the  opening  and  grading  of  said  street. 

Extract  from  an  act   making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  June  30,  1898  (30  Stats.,  pp.  532  and  538). 

For  electric  arc  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection,  in  those 
streets  now  lighted  with  electric  arc  lights  in  the  city  of  Washington, 
and  for  extensions  of  such  service  along  the  lines  of  lawful  conduits 
now  existing,  including  conduits  authorized  by  the  act,  Connecticut 
avenue,  between  Farragut  square  and  Florida  avenue;  Indiana  ave- 
nue and  C  street  from  Fourth  street  northwest  to  Delaware  avenue 
northwest,  and  East  Capitol  street  from  First  to  Eleventh  streets,  not 
exceeding  sixty  thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  not  more  than 
twenty-five  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light 
burning  from  forty -five  minutes  after  sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  be- 
fore sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by  means  of  underground  wire; 
and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual  candle- 
power,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall  be  used  for  electric 
lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets 
or  avenues  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

24757 


39 

Same  act,  under  the  head  of  "  Telegraph  and  Telephone  Service," 
provides  as  follows: 

That  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act  it  shall  be  unlawful  for 
any  person  or  any  telephone  company  doing  business  in  the  District 
of  Columbia  to  charge  or  receive  more  than  fifty  dollars  per  annum 
for  the  use  of  a  telephone  on  a  separate  wire ;  forty  dollars  for  each 
telephone,  there  being  not  more  than  two  on  a  wire ;  thirty  dollars  for 
each  telephone,  there  being  not  more  than  three  on  a  wire,  and  twenty- 
five  dollars  for  each  telephone,  there  being  four  or  more  on  the  same 
wire. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  supply  deficiencies  in  appropri- 
ations, etc.,  approved  July  7,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  (564). 

District  of  Columbia.  Telegraph  and  telephone  service.  *  *  * 
Provided,  That  all  existing' conduits  within  the  fire  limits,  and  all 
existing  overhead  electric  light  wires  without  the  fire  limits  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  legalized  until  otherwise  provided 
by  law,  and  house  connections  may  be  made  with  such  overhead  elec- 
tric light  wires  outside  such  fire  limits:  Provided  further,  That  the 
cable  of  the  Postal  Telegraph  Company,  now  in  the  ducts  of  the  Po- 
tomac Electric  Power  Company,  may  be  connected  with  the  existing 
wires  of  said  telegraph  company  on  the  Aqueduct  Bridge  by  a  con- 
nection not  exceeding  three  hundred  feet  in  length. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Washington  and  University  Railroad 
Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  July  8,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p. 
725). 

SEC.  3.  That  the  motive  power  shall  be  electricity,  and  if  the  trol- 
ley system  is  used  a  return  wire  of  equal  capacity  to  the  feed  wire, 
and  similarly  insulated,  must  be  provided,  and  each  car  shall  be 
equipped  with  a  double  trolley.  No  portion  of  the  electrical  circuit 
shall,  under  any  circumstances,  be  allowed  to  pass  through  the  earth, 
and  neither  pole  of  any  dynamo  furnishing  power  to  the  line  shall  be 
grounded* 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Relative  to  electric-lighting  wires  west  of  Rock  Creek. 
Approved  July  S,  1898  (30  Stats.,  p.  753). 

That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby 
authorized  to  issue  permits  to  existing  electric-light  companies  in 
the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  extension  of  existing  overhead  elec- 
tric wires  outside  the  fire  limits  and  west  of  Rock  Creek  to  be  used  for 
lighting  purposes  only. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1899  (30  Stats.,  p.  1052). 

For  'electric  arc  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection,  in  those 
streets  now  lighted  with  electric  arc  lights  in  the  city  of  Washington, 
and  for  extension  of  such  service  along  the  lines  of  lawful  conduits 
now  existing,  not  exceeding  sixty-three  thousand  dollars:  Provided, 
That  not  more  than  twenty-five  cents  per  night  shall  be  paid  for  any 
electric  arc  light  burning  from  fifteen  minutes  after  sunset  to  forty- 
five  minutes  before  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by  means  of  under- 
ground wire;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thou- 

24757 


40   ; 

sand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall  be 
used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or  over 
any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  city  of  Washington:  Provided 
further,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized  to  grant  permits  for  the  repair,  enlargement,  and 
extension,  under  proper  regulations,  of  existing  electric-lighting  con- 
duits, and  in  every  conduit  constructed  or  to  be  constructed  under  the 
provisions  of  this  paragraph,  three  ducts  shall  be  reserved  for  the 
use  of  the  United  States  and  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  as  a  con- 
dition for  the  right  to  use  conduits  heretofore  built,  or  to  be  built 
under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  electric-lighting  companies  shall  be 
required  at  all  times  to  furnish  to  the  public  and  to  private  consumers 
in  all  parts  of  the  District  of  Columbia  standard  arc  lights  of  not  less 
than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  at  a  rate  not  exceeding  seventy- 
two  dollars  per  annum  for  each  arc  light;  and  on  and  after  the  first 
day  of  June,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-nine,  the  maximum  price 
of  electric  current  sold  or  furnished  to  any  consumer  in  the  District 
of  Columbia  shall  be  reduced  from  the  present  maximum  of  fifteen 
cents  per  Kilo-watt  hour  to  not  exceeding  ten  cents  per  Kilo-watt 
hour.  That  if  consumers  other  than  the  Government  shall  not  pay 
monthly  electric  bills  within  ten  days  after  the  same  shall  have  been 
presented,  said  companies  may  charge  and  collect  from  said  consumers 
so  failing  to  pay  said  bill  as  aforesaid  eleven  cents  per  Kilo-watt  hour 
for  the  electric  current  furnished  to  said  consumer  during  said  month : 
And  provided  further,  The  right  to  amend,  modify,  or  repeal  the 
privileges  herein  granted,  and  to  further  limit  the  prices  herein 
specified,  is  hereby  expressly  reserved;  any  company  charging  or 
collecting  an  amount  in  excess  of  the  rates  herein  prescribed  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  shall  pay  to  the  District  of 
Columbia  the  sum  of  fifty,  dollars  for  each  and  every  offense,  to  be 
collected  as  other  fines  are  now  collected  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  supply  deficiencies,  etc.,  ap- 
proved March  3,  1899  (30  Stats.,  p.  1220). 

That  in  the  District  of  Columbia  any  street  railroad  company  oper- 
ating its  cars  in  part  over  the  tracks  of  another  company  along  a 
route  authorized  by  Congress  shall  be  allowed  until  October  first, 
eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-nine,  in  which  to  install  an  underground 
electric  system,  and  pending  such  change  shall  preserve  all  rights  now 
granted  by  its  charter. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  authorize  the  Washington  and  Gettysburg  Railway  Com- 
pany, of  Maryland,  to  extend  its  line  of  road  into  and  within  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  3,  1899  (30  Stats.,  p.  1374.) 

*  *  *  That  the  motive  power  shall  be  cable,  electric,  compressed 
air,  or  other  mechanical  power,  other  than  steam  locomotive*  power ; 
and  wherever  the  trolley  system  is  used,  a  return  wire,  similar  in 
capacity,  situation,  and  insulation  to  the  feed  wire,  shall  be  provided 
for  the  current,  and  each  car  shall  be  provided  with  a  double  trolley ; 
and  no  dynamo  furnishing  power  to  the  road,  or  any  portion  thereof, 
shall  have  either  of  its  poles  connected  to  the  earth. 

24757 


41 


TELEGRAPH  AND  TELEPHONE  LINES. 


SEC.  19.  That  said  company  is  also  authorized  to  construct  and  op- 
erate, for  its  own  use  only,  telegraph  and  telephone  lines  along  its 
railway,  as  herein  provided  for,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  To  promote  the  relocation  of  certain  tracks  of  the  City 
and  Suburban  Railway  Company,  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  Approved, 
March  3,  1899  (30  Stats.,  p.  1391). 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  City  and  Sub- 
urban Railway  Company,  of  Washington,  be,  and  it  is  hereby,  author- 
ized and  directed  to  abandon  its  single  track  passing  around  the  south 
side  of  Stanton  Square,  and  in  lieu  thereof  construct  an  additional 
single  track  on  the  north  side  of  Stanton  Square  from  the  intersection 
of  Fourth  and  C  streets  northeast  to  Sixth  and  C  streets  northeast. 
That  the  City  and  Suburban  Railway  of  Washington,  be  and  it  is 
hereby  authorized  and  required  within  six  months  after  the  passage 
of  this  Act,  to  equip  with  the  same  underground  system  of  electrical 
propulsion,  as  is  now  being  installed  on  its  urban  lines  the  following 
portion  of  its  suburban  route,  to  wit: 

Beginning  at  the  intersection  of  Florida  avenue  and  Eckington 
place,  and  running  thence  north  through  Eckington  place  to  north  R 
street ;  thence  east  on  north  R  street  to  east  Third  street ;  thence  by 
single  track  north  on  east  Third  street  to  north  T  street ;  thence  still  by 
single  track  west  on  north  T  street  to  east  Second  street ;  thence  south 
on  east  Second  street  to  north  R  street;  thence  on  north  R  street  to 
Eckington  place,  and  thence  to  the  beginning : 

Providing,  upon  completion  by  said  City  and  Suburban  Railway  of 
the  underground  construction  hereinbefore  provided  for,  the  obliga- 
tion of  the  said  City  and  Suburban  Railway  imposed  by  section  two 
of  the  Act  approved  June  twenty-seventh,  eighteen  hundred'  and 
ninety-eight,  in  respect  to  the  construction  of  its  line  on  North  Capi- 
tol street  north  of  T  street,  shall  cease  and  in  lieu  of  that  provision  said 
City  and  Suburban  Railway  is  required,  within  six  months  after 
North  Capitol  street  shall  have  been  graded,  to  construct  and  operate 
a  double-track  railway  on  North  Capitol  street  from  T  street  to  Mich- 
igan avenue;  thence  on  Michigan  avenue  east,  to  connect  with  its 
present  tracks  on  Bunker  Hill  road. 

Said  railway  on  North  Capitol  street  north  of  T  street  and  on 
Michigan  avenue  is  to  be  operated  by  the  overhead  trolley  system;  but 
the  right  to  operate  an  overhead  trolley  on  North  Capitol  street  shall 
cease  and  determine  on  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  four,  or 
whenever  after  that  date  the  said  street  shall  be  paved ;  and  the  said 
company  shall,  on  and  after  said  date  or  paving  as  aforesaid  operate 
the  said  portion  of  its  line  by  the  underground  electric  system. 

AN  ACT  Regulating  permits  for  private  conduits  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 
Approved  May  26,  1900  (31  Stats.,  p.  217). 

That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they 
are  hereby,  authorized  to  grant  permission  to  lay  conduits  for  the 
transmission  of  electric  power  and  pipes  for  the  transmission  of 

24757—08 4 


42 

steam  in  alleys  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  under  the  following  con- 
ditions, namely : 

The  conduits  or  pipes  shall  be  laid  entirely  within  a  square  or  block, 
and  shall  not  cross  or  enter  any  avenue,  street,  or  highway. 

The  conduits  and  pipes  shall  be  located  as  directed  by  said  Commis- 
sioners and  be  laid  under  their  inspection,  and  the  cost  of  such  inspec- 
tion, together  with  the  cost  of  replacing  all  improved  pavements  dis- 
turbed in  connection  with  said  work,  shall  be  paid  in  advance  by  the 
party  desiring  to  lay  said  conduits  or  steam  pipes. 

The  conduits  or  pipes  shall  be  used  only  to  connect  the  premises 
owned  and  operated  by  the  permittee,  and  no  power  or  steam  shall  be 
supplied  therefrom  for  any  other  purpose  than  the  use  of  the  per- 
mittee. 

The  permittee  shall  not  rent  the  conduit  or  pipe  or  any  portion 
thereof. 

SEC.  2.  That  on  violation  of  any  of  the  above  provisions  or  restric- 
tions, the  said  Commissioners  shall  require  the  permittee,  after  thirty 
days'  notice,  to  abandon  the  use  of  the  said  conduits  or  pipes  and 
remove  them  from  the  alley  or  alleys  in  which  they  are  located,  and 
if  said  permittee  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  remove  said  conduits  or 
pipes  and  place  the  surface  of  the  alley  in  good  condition  within 
sixty  days  after  the  date  of  said  notice,  the  said  permittee  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  shall  be  liable  to  a  fine  of  ten 
dollars  for  each  and  every  day  that  said  conduits  or  pipes  are  allowed 
to  remain  in  the  alley,  or  the  said  alley  shall  remain  out  of  repair, 
which  fine  shall  be  recovered  in  the  police  court  of  said  District,  in 
the  name  of  said  District,  as  other  fines  and  penalties  are  now  recov- 
ered in  said  court. 

SEC.  3.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  act. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  June  6,  1900  (31  Stats.,  p.  563). 

Provided  further,  That  hereafter  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to  grant  permits  for  the  re- 
pair, enlargement,  and  extension,  under  proper  regulations,  of  exist- 
ing electric-lighting  conduits,  and  in  every  conduit  constructed  or  to 
be  constructed  under  the  provisions  of  this  paragraph,  three  ducts 
shall  be  reserved  for  the  use  of  the  United  States  and  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  as  a  condition  for  the  right  to  use  conduits  heretofore 
built,  or  to  be  built  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  electric-light- 
ing companies  shall  be  required  at  all  times  to  furnish  to  the  public 
and  to  private  consumers  in  all  parts  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
standard  arc  lights  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower, 
at  a  rate  not  exceeding  seventy-two  dollars  per  annum  for  each  arc 
light ;  and  on  and  after  the  first  day  of  June,  nineteen  hundred,  the 
maximum  price  of.  electric  current  sold  or  furnished  to  any  consumer 
in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  not  exceed  ten  cents  per  kilowatt 
hour.  That  if  consumers  other  than  the  Government  shall  not  pay 
monthly  electric  bills  within  ten  days  after  the  same  shall  have  been 
presented,  said  companies  may  charge  and  collect  from  said  consumer 
so  failing  to  pay  said  bill  as  aforesaid  eleven  cents  per  kilowatt  hour 
for  the  electric  current  furnished  to  said  consumer  during  said 

24757 


43 

month:  And  provided  further,  That  the  right  to  amend,  modify,  or 
repeal  the  privileges  herein  granted,  and  to  further  limit  the  prices 
herein  specified,  is  hereby  expressly  reserved ;  any  company  charging 
or  collecting  an  amount  in  excess  of  the  rates  herein  prescribed  shall 
be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  shall  pay  to  the  District  of 
Columbia  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars  for  each  and  every  offense,  to  be 
collected  as  other  fines  are  now  collected  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  provide  for  eliminating  certain  grade  crossings  on  the 
line  of  the  Baltimore  and  Potomac  Railroad  Company,  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington, District  of  Columbia,  and  requiring  said  company  to  depress  and  ele- 
vate its  tracks,  and  to  enable  it  to  relocate  parts  of  its  railroad  therein,  and 
for  other  purposes,  approved  February  12,  1001  (31  Stats.,  p.  773). 

Provided,  That  the  Washington,  Alexandria  and  Mount  Vernon 
Railway  Company  now  using  the  Long  Bridge  shall  be  permitted, 
with  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
to  change  its  location  so  as  to  cross  the  highway  bridge  herein  pro- 
vided for;  all  plans  for  such  change  to  be  approved  by  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  Chief  of  Engineers  of 
the  United  States  Army:  And  provided  further,  That  a  standard 
underground  electric  system  of  street  car  propulsion  shall  be  installed 
by  said  company  on  the  park  highway  leading  to  said  bridge,  and 
no  dynamo  furnishing  power  to  this  portion  of  the  road  shall  be  in 
any  manner  connected  with  the  ground. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  March  1,  1901  (31  Stats.,  p.  831). 

Provided  further,  That  the  electric  and  gas  light  companies  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  shall  file  with  the  Commissioners  of  the  District 
of  Columbia  on  the  first  day  of  August,  nineteen  hundred  and  two, 
and  annually  thereafter,  a  statement  showing  their  receipts  aiicl  ex- 
penditures for  the  previous  fiscal  year. 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  To  authorize  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  to  issue  certain  temporary  permits.  Approved  April  15,  1902  (32 
Stats.,  p.  738). 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to  permit  electric- 
light  wires  to  be  laid  in  existing  conduits  and  house  connections  be- 
tween such  conduits  and  Convention  Hall,  to  be  made  for  the  purpose 
of  supplying  additional  light  for  the  Masonic  fair  and  exposition  of 
nineteen  hundred  and  two:  Provided,  That  all  such  wires  shall  be 
removed  on  or  before  May  tenth,  nineteen  hundred  and  two. 

AN  ACT  Regulating  the  use  of  telephone  wires  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 
Approved  June  20,  1902  (32  Stats.,  p.  393.) 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  all  telephone 
poles  and  the  wires  attached  thereto  not  the  property  of  the  United 
States  or  the  District  of  Columbia  now  upon  the  streets  and  avenues 
within  the  section  of  the  District  of  Columbia  bounded  by  a  line  be- 
ginning at  Second  and  B  streets  southeast  and  running  thence  along  B 
street  south,  Third  street  west,  Missouri  avenue,  Sixth  street  west,  B 

24757 


44 

street  north,  Twenty-third  street  west,  Rock  Creek,  Cincinnati  street, 
Columbia  road,  Sixteenth  street  west  (extended) ,  Park  street,  Whitney 
avenue,  Eleventh  street  west,  R  street  north,  New  Jersey  avenue,  C 
street  north,  and  Second  street  east  to  the  point  of  beginning,  except 
as  hereinafter  provided,  shall  from  time  to  time,  as  may  be  prescribed 
by  the  Commissioners  of  said  District,  be  taken  down  and  removed. 
The  wrork  of  taking  down  and  removing  said  poles  and  wires  shall  be 
done  under  the  direction  of  said  Commissioners,  and  it  is  hereby  mad.e 
the  duty  of  said  Commissioners  to  enforce  compliance  with  the  provi- 
sions of  this  Act  as  expeditiously  as  may  be  consistent  with  the  public 
interests;  and  the  said  Commissioners  are  hereby  empowered  from 
time  to  time  to  authorize  any  indvidual,  company,  or  corporation  now 
operating  and  maintaining  a  telephone  plant  or  system,  partly  over- 
head and  partly  underground,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  extend 
and  enlarge  its  system  of  underground  conduits,  subsidiaries,  and 
manholes  in  or  under  any  or  all  of  the  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  lanes,  or 
other  public  highways  in  said  city  and  District  as  may  be  requisite 
and  necessary  for  the  purposes  of  this  Act  and  for  the  reception  of 
such  other  cables  and  wires  as  may  be  reasonably  required  in  the 
future  by  the  growth  of  such  individual,  company,  or  corporation  or 
to  adequately  meet  the  requirements  of  the  public  for  telephone 
service. 

SEC.  2.  That  upon  the  approval  of  this  Act,  and  from  time  to  time 
thereafter,  any  individual,  company,  or  corporation  now  maintaining 
and  operating  a  telephone  plant  or  system  in  said  District,  partly 
overhead  and  partly  underground,  shall  prepare  and  submit  to  the 
said  Commissioners a  plan  or  plans,  or  application  or  applications,  in 
writing,  showing  the  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  lanes,  and  other  public 
highways  in  or  under  which  it  is  proposed^to  construct  conduits,  sub- 
sidiaries, or  manholes,  and  giving  the  general  dimensions,  length,  and 
course  thereof,  and  before  any  such  conduit,  subsidiary,  or  manhole  is 
constructed  it  shall  be  necessary  to  obtain  the  approval  and  permis- 
sion of  said  Commissioners.  Said  Commissioners  are  empowered  to 
require  that  all  proposed  conduits,  subsidiaries,  and  manholes  shall  be 
constructed  in  accordance  with  the  approved  plan  or  permit;  and 
upon  the  approval  by  said  Commissioners  of  any  such  plan,  or  the 
issuing  of  any  such  permit,  providing  for  the  construction  of  under- 
ground conduits,  subsidiaries,  or  manholes  within  the  section  in  said 
District  described  in  section  one  of  this  Act  the  construction  therein 
provided  for  shall  be  proceeded  with  diligently,  and  upon  the  comple- 
tion thereof,  or  as  soon  thereafter  as  may  be,  without  impairing  the 
efficiency  of  the  telephone  service  in  said  District',  the  individual,  com- 
pany, or  corporation  constructing  such  conduits,  subsidiaries,  or 
manholes  shall  place  its  cables  and  wires  therein  and  take  down  and 
remove  from  the  streets  and  avenues  in  which  such  conduits  are  con- 
structed all  poles  and  wires  except  such  as  said  Commissioners  may,  in 
accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  permit  to  remain  for  the 
purpose  of  distributing  wires  for  house  connections. 

SEC.  3.  That  any  individual,  company,  or  corporation  owning  and 

•  maintaining  such  "poles  and  wires  attached  thereto  on  or  over  any 

street  or  avenue  within  the  section  of  the  District  described  in  section 

one  of  this  Act  who  shall  willfully  neglect  or  refuse  to  remove  the 

same,  as  provided  in  section  two  hereof,  shall  be  liable  to  a  penalty  ot 

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not  more  than  twent}r-five  dollars  for  each  and  every  day  during 
which  such  failure  to  remove  said  poles  and  wires  shall  continue, 
which  amount  may  be  recovered  by  the  District  of  Columbia  in  any 
court  of  competent  jurisdiction. 

SEC.  4.  That  said  Commissioners  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  empow- 
ered to  authorize  the  erection  and  maintenance 'of  poles  in'the  alleys 
of  said  city  and  District  and  the  stringing  thereon  of  telephone  con- 
ductors from  alley  poles  or  house-top  fixtures  in  one  square  to  alley 
poles  or  house-top  fixtures  in  another  square  for  the  purpose  of 
enabling  house  connections  to  be  made,  and  also  to  authorize  the  erec- 
tion of  telephone  poles  in  the  District  of  Columbia  outside  the  limits 
of  the  section  of  said  District  described  in  section  one  of  this  Act  and 
the  stringing  thereon  of  telephone  conductors  for  house  connections  or 
for  connection  with  lines  outside  the  District  of  Columbia;  also  to 
authorize  the  erection  of  such  poles  and  the  stringing  thereon  of  such 
wires  in  the  streets  and  avenues  of  said  city  and  District  in  the  parts 
thereof  in  which  there  are  no  public  alleys,  and  in  such  other  places  as 
the  public  interests  do  not  require  that  the  lines  be  placed  under- 
ground, or  in  places  where  it  shall  be  deemed  by  said  Commissioners 
impracticable  to  advantageously  place  or  operate  such  lines  under- 
ground. During  the  progress  of  the  work  provided  for  in  section  one 
of  this  Act  said  Commissioners  are  also  empowered  to  issue  temporary 
permits  for  the  erection  and  maintenance  of  poles  and  overhead  con- 
ductors in  places  where  the  lines  are  ultimately  to  be  placed  under- 
ground, but  where  the  work  can  not  be  immediately  done  because  of 
the  greater  urgency  of  work  in  other  localities,  or  for  other  reasons 
satisfactory  to  said  Commissioners;  but  in  issuing  such  temporary 
permits  said  Commissioners  shall  bear  in  mind  the  purpose  and  policy 
of  this  Act,  which  is  to  cause  to  be  removed  from  the  streets  and  ave- 
nues within  the  section  of  said  District  described  in  section  one  of 
this  Act  all  poles  and  wires  attached  thereto,  except  as  hereinbefore 
provided,  as  expeditiously  as  may  be  without  interfering  with  or 
impairing  the  efficiency  of  the  telephone  service  in  said  District  and 
without  denying  to  the  public  reasonable  telephone  facilities  at  all 
times. 

SEC.  5.  That  all  subways,  conduits,  manholes,  and  overhead  lines 
constructed  or  erected  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act  shall  be  sub- 
ject to  such  reasonable  regulations  as  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  may  from  time  to  time  prescribe  as  to  inspection, 
location,  character  of  conduit  construction,  and  height  of  poles  and 
wires:  Provided,  That  in  all  conduits  so  constructed  such  space  shall 
be  furnished  to  the  District  of  Columbia  as  may  be  necessary  for  its 
fire-alarm  or  police-patrol  wires  or  cables,  carrying  low  potential  cur- 
rents of  electricity,  free  of  charge :  And  provided  further,  That  the 
number  of  ducts  so  reserved  in  any  one  conduit  shall  not  be  more 
than  three. 

SEC.  6.  That  the  said  Commissioners  are  empowered  to  authorize 
any  such  individual,  company,  or  corporation  now  owning  and  oper- 
ating any  lines  of  street  poles  and  wires  and  any  alley  poles  or  alley- 
pole  line  within  the  District  of  Columbia  and  outside  of  the  section 
described  in  section  one  of  this  Act  to  continue  to  maintain  the  same, 
with  such  repairs  and  renewals  as  may  be  necessary  to  keep  them  in 
good  order  and  condition  of  repair,  and  to  add  thereto  such  poles  and 

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wires  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  purpose  of  making  house  connec- 
tions or  for  connecting  with  telephone  lines  outside  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  7.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

Extract  from  an  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled  "An  act  to  establish  a  code  of 
law  for  the  District  of  Columbia,"  approved  June  30,  1902  (32  Stats., 
p.  534). 

SEC.  826  A.  OFFENSES  AGAINST  PROPERTY. — Whoever  shall  knoAv- 
ingly  connect  or  disconnect  any  electrical  conductor  belonging  to  any 
company  using  or  engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  supply  of  elec- 
tric current  for  the  purposes  of  light^  heat,  and  power,  or  either  of 
them,  or  makes  any  connection  with  any  such  electrical  conductor 
for  the  purpose  of  using  or  wasting  the  electric  current,  or  who  in 
any  wise  tampers  with  any  meter  used  to  register  current  consumed, 
or  who  interferes  with  the  operating  of  any  dynamo  or  other  elec- 
trical appliance  of  such  company,  or  tampers  with  or  interferes  with 
the  poles,  wires,  conduits,  or  other  apparatus  used  by  such  com- 
panies, unless  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  duly  authorized  by  or 
be  in  the  employ  of  such  company,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not 
exceeding  one  thousand  dollars  or  imprisonment  not  exceeding  one 
year,  or  both. 

Extract  from  a  joint  resolution  giving  authority  to  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  to  make  special  regulations  for  the  occasion  of  the 
Thirty-sixth  National  Encampment  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  etc., 
approved  June  30,  1902  (32  Stats.,  p.  748). 

SEC.  2.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized  to  permit  the  committee  on  illumination  of  the 
citizens'  executive  committee  for  the  entertainment  of  the  Thirty- 
sixth  National  Encampment  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  to 
stretch  suitable  conductors,  with  sufficient  supports  wherever  neces- 
sary, for  the  purpose  of  effecting  the  said  illumination  within  the 
District  of  Columbia  :  Provided,  That  the  said  conductors  shall  not  be 
used  for  the  conveying  of  electrical  currents  after  October  fifteenth, 
nineteen  hundred  and  two,  and  shall,  with  their  supports,  be  fully 
and  entirely  removed  from  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the  said  city 
of  Washington  on  or  before  October  twentieth,  nineteen  hundred  and 
two:  Provided  further,  That  the  stretching  and  removing  of  the 
said  wires  shall  be  under  the  supervision  of  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  who  shall  see  that  the  provisions  of  this 
resolution  are  enforced,  that  all  needful  precautions  are  taken  for 
the  protection  of  the  public,  and  that  the  pavement  of  any  street, 
avenue,  or  alley  disturbed  is  replaced  in  as  good  condition  as  before 
entering  upon  the  work  herein  authorized:  Provided  further,  That 
no  expense  or  damage  on  account  of  or  due  to  the  stretching,  opera- 
tion, or  removing  of  the  said  temporary  overhead  conductors  shall 
be  incurred  by  the  United  States  or  the  District  of  Columbia :  Pro- 
vided further,  That  if  it  shall  be  necessary  to  erect  wires  for  illumi- 
nation purposes  over  any  park  or  reservation  in  the  District  of 
Columbia  that  the  work  of  erection  and  removal  of  said  wires  shall 
be  under  the  supervision  of  the  official  in  charge  of  said  park  or 
reservation. 

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^  » 

Extract   from   an   act   making  appropriations  for   expenses   of  the   District  of 
Columbia,  approved  July  1,  1902  (32  Stats.,  p.  602  and  619). 

And  provided  further,  That  during  the  fiscal  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  three  the  illuminating  power  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any 
gas-lighting  company,  person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
shall  be  equal  to  twenty-two  candles,  notwithstanding  the  require- 
ments as  to  candlepower  prescribed  by  section  three  of  the  Act  regu- 
lating the  sale  of  gas  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June 
sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six. 

For  electric  arc  lighting,  including  necessary  inspection,  and  for 
extensions  of  such  service,  not  exceeding  seventy-six  thousand  dol- 
Jars:  Provided,  That  not  more  that  seventy-two  dollars  per  annum 
shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light  burning  from  fifteen  minutes 
after  sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly 
by  means  of  underground  wire;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not 
less  than  one  thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appro- 
priation shall  be 'used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that 
may  exist  on  or  over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  of  the  city  of 
Washington:  Provided,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  are  hereby  authorized,  under  conditions  and  regulations  to 
be  prescribed  by  them,  to  permit  the  erection  of  poles  and  the  string- 
ing of  overhead  wires  thereon  outside  of  the  fire  limits  and  east  of 
Rock  Creek  for  electric  lighting  purposes  only. 

Same  act,  under  head  of  "  Taxation  of  Personal  Property,"  pro- 
vides as  follows: 

PAR.  5.  Each  national  bank;  as  the  trustee  for  its  stockholders, 
through  its  president  or  cashier,  and  all  other  incorporated  banks,  and 
trust  companies,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  through  their  presidents 
or  cashiers,  and -all  gas,  electric  lighting,  and  telephone  companies, 
through  their  proper  officers,  shall  make  affidavit  to  the  board  of 
personal-tax  appraisers  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  August  each  year 
as  to  the  amount  of  its  or  their  gross  earnings  for  the  preceding  year 
ending  the  thirtieth  day  of  June,  and  shall  pay  to  the  collector  of 
taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia  per  a'nnum  on  such  gross  earnings 
as  follows:  Each  national  bank,  and  all  other  incorporated  banks,  and 
trust  companies,  respectively,  six  per  centum;  each  gas  company,  five 
per  centum;  each  electric  lighting,  and  telephone  company,  four  per 
centum.  And  in  addition  thereto  the  real  estate  owned  by  each 
national  or  other  incorporated  bank,  and  each  trust,  gas,  electric  light- 
ing and  telephone  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  taxed 
as  other  real  estate  in  said  District:  Provided,  That  street  railroad 
companies  shall  continue  to. pay  the  four  per  centum  per  annum  on 
their  gross  receipts  and  other  taxes  as  provided  by  existing  law,  and 
insurance  companies  shall  continue  to  pay  the  one  and  one-half  per 
centum  on  premium  receipts,  as  provided  bv  section  six  hundred  and 
fifty  of  the  Code  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  That  so  much  of  the 
Act  approved  October  first,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety,  entitled 
"An  Act  to  provide  for  the  incorporation  of  trust,  loan,  mortgage, 
and  certain  other  corporations  within  the  District  of  Columbia  "  as  is 
inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  section  is  hereby  repealed. 

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* 

Extract  from  an  act  to  provide  for  laying  a  single  electric  street-railway  track 
across  the  Aqueduct  Bridge,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses, approved  January  29,  1903  (32  Stats.,  p.  783). 

SEC.  8.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized  to  permit  the  cars  of  said  railroad  company  or 
companies  using  said  track  across  said  bridge  and  in  M  and  Thirty- 
sixth  streets  to  be  operated  by  the  underground  electric  system  or  by 
overhead  trolly,  as  they  may  deem  desirable;  and  in  case  the  over- 
head trolly  is  used  each  car  shall  be  equipped  with  a  double  trolly, 
and  a  return  wire  shall  be  provided  for  the  electric  current  equal  in 
capacity  to  the  feed  system  upon  this  portion  of  the  line  and  similarly 
situated,  and  no  pole  of  any  dynamo  furnishing  power  for  the  opera- 
tion of  said  cars  shall  be  in  any  manner  connected  with  the  earth. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  for  expenses  of  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia, approved  March  3,  1903  (32  Stats.,  p.  967). 

And  provided  further,  That  during  the  fiscal  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  four  the  illuminating  power  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any 
gas-lighting  company,  person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
shall  be  equal  to  twenty-two  candles,  notwithstanding  the  require- 
ments as  to  candlepower  prescribed  by  section  three  of  the  Act  regu- 
lating the  sale  of  gas  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June 
sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six. 

[PUBLIC  RESOLUTION — No.  3.] 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Authorizing  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia to  permit  the  erection  of  certain  poles  and  overhead  wires  in  connection 
with  the  work  of  eliminating  grade  crossings  in  the  city  of  Washington. 
Approved,  January  7,  1904. 

Resolved  l)y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit 
the  temporary  erection  of  poles  and  the  stringing  of  overhead  wires 
thereon  for  lighting  and  power  purposes  over  and  along  such  streets 
and  avenues  and  alleys  in  the  District  of  Columbia  as  in  their  opinion 
are  necessary  and  proper  for  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  the  Acts 
of  Congress  providing  for  the  elimination  of  grade  crossings  in  the 
qity  of  Washington  and  the  construction  of  a  union  station :  Provided, 
That  said  poles  and  wires  shall  be  used  only  for  the  work  authorized 
by  said  Acts  and  shall  be  erected  under  the  supervision  of  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  shall  be  removed  when- 
ever, in  the  judgment  of  said  Commissioners,  they  shall  no  longer  be 
necessary :  Provided  further,  That  no  expense  or  damage  on  account 
of  or  due  to  the  erection,  operation,  or  removal  of  the  said  temporary 
poles  and  wires  shall  be  incurred  by  the  United  States  or  the  District 
of  Columbia. 

[PUBLIC  RESOLUTION — No.  3.] 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Authorizing  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia to  permit  the  erection  of  certain  poles  and  overhead  wires  in  connection 
with  the  work  of  eliminating  grade  crossings  in  the  city  of  Washington. 
Approved,  January  7,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  581). 

Resolved  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled*  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  per- 

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49 

mit  the  temporary  erection  of  poles  and  the  stringing  of  overhead 
wires  thereon  for  lighting  and  power  purposes  over  and  along  such 
streets  and  avenues  and  alleys  in  the  District  of  Columbia  as  in  their 
opinion  are  necessary  and  proper  for  carrying  out  the  provisions  of 
the  Acts  of  Congress  providing  for  the  elimination  of  grade  crossings 
in  the  city  of  Washington  and  the  construction  of  a  union  station: 
Provided,  That  said  poles  and  wires  shall  be  used  only  for  the  work 
authorized  by  said  Acts  and  shall  be  erected  under  the  supervision  of 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  shall  be  removed 
whe  ever,  in  the  judgment  of  said  Commissioners,  they  shall  no 
longer  be  necessary :  Provided,  further*  That  no  expense  or  damage 
on  account  of  or  due  to  the  erection,  operation,  or  removal  of  the  said 
temporary  poles  and  wires  shall  be  incurred  by  the  United  States  or 
the  District  of  Columbia. 

[PUBLIC — No.  162.] 

AN  ACT  To  regulate  electrical  wiring  in  the  District  of  Columbia.     Approved 
April  26,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  306). 

Be  it  enacted  l)y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  have  power  to  make  from 
time  to  time  such  rules  and  regulations  respecting  the  production,  use. 
and  control  of  electricity  for  light,  heat,  and  power  purposes  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  not  inconsistent  with  existing  laws,  as  in  their 
judgment  will  afford  safet}r  and  convenience  to  the  public;  and  the 
Commissioners  of  said  District  are  further  authorized  and  empow- 
ered to  prescribe  such  fees  for  the  examination  of  the  electrical  wiring, 
machinery,  and  appliances  in  buildings  as  they  ma}^  deem  proper,  to 
be  paid  to  the  collector  of  taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  any 
such  rules  and  regulations  shall  after  promulgation  have  the  effect 
and  force  of  law :  Provided,  That  nothing  in  this  Act  contained  shall 
apply  to  the  power  plants  or  buildings  of  incorporated  companies 
engaged  in  the  production  and  distribution  of  electric  current  for 
public  service  or  use. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  electrical  engineer  who  shall  be  chief  inspector  of 
electrical  work  and  his  assistants  are  hereby  empowered  and  required, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Commissioners,  to  inspect  any  building  in 
course  of  erection  and  during  reasonable  hours  to  enter  into  and  ex- 
amine any  building  where  electrical  current  is  produced  or  utilized 
for  lighting,  heating,  or  for  power,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining 
violations  of  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  Act ;  and  upon  finding  any 
devices  aforesaid  defective  or  dangerous  shall  cause  to  be  delivered  a 
written  notice  of  any  violation  of  any  provisions  of  this  Act,  or  of  any 
regulation  of  said  Commissioners  duly  adopted,  to  the  constructing 
contractor,  owner,  or  agent  of  any  building  directing  him  or  them  to 
remove  or  amend  the  same  within  a  period  to  be  fixed  in  said  notice; 
and  in  case  of  neglect  or  refusal  on  the  part  of  the  party  so  notified 
to  remove  or  amend  the  same  within  the  time  and  in  the  manner  pre- 
scribed by  the  chief  inspector  of  electrical  work,  and  approved  by  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  party  so  offending 
shall  pa}7  a  fine  of  not  more  than  twenty-five  dollars  for  each  and 
every  day's  failure  or  neglect  to  remove  or  amend  the  same  after  being 
so  notified,  and  in  default  of  payment  of  such  fine  such  person  shall 

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50 

be  confined  in  the  workhouse  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  a  period 
not  exceeding  one  month;  and  all  prosecutions  under  this  Act  shall 
be  in  the  police  court  of  said  District,  in  the  name  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  3.  That  in  the  place  of  the  present  electrical  engineer  now  car- 
ried on  the  per  diem  roll  there  be,  and  is  hereby,  established,  under 
the  direction  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  the 
office  of  electrical  engineer,  and  the  Commissioners  of  said  District  are 
hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  appoint  an  electrical  engineer,  at  a 
salary  of  two  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  per  annum,  and  said  elec- 
trical engineer  shall  be  an  expert  electrician,  possessing;  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  most  modern  methods  for  the  production,  use,  and 
control  of  electricity  and  electrical  appliances,  construction,  wiring, 
and  insulation,  as  well  as  such  executive  ability  and  adaptability  to 
office  work  as  is  requisite  for  the  efficient  management  of  the  said 
office.  And  the  Commissioners  are  authorized  and  directed  to  appoint 
two  electrical  inspectors  to  assist  in  the  w^ork  required  by  the  author- 
ity of  this  Act,  at  a  salary  of  one  thousand  two  hundred  dollars  per 
annum  each,  who  shall  perform  such  clerical  duties  as  may  be  required 
by  the  Commissioners. 

SEC.  4.  That  it  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person,  company,  or  cor- 
poration generating  current  for  electric  light,  heat,  or  power  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  to  connect  its  system  and  furnish  current  for 
electrical  purposes  to  any  building  or  premises,  the  wiring  of  which 
shall  not  have  been  inspected  and  approved  by  the  chief  inspector  of 
electrical  wrork. 

Any  person,  company,  or  corporation  violating  the  provisions  of 
this  section  shall,  upon  written  notice  from  the  chief  inspector  of 
electrical  work  to  do  so,  immediately  remove  said  connection  and  cut 
off  the  current,  and  shall  not  again  supply  said  current  until  author- 
ized by  the  said  inspector.  For  failure  to  comply  with  said  notice 
the  offending  person,  company,  or  corporation  shall  be  fined  not  less 
than  five  dollars  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  and  every 
day's  failure  or  neglect  to  remove  said  connection  and  to  cut  off  the 
current. 

The  chief  inspector  of  electrical  work  is  hereby  authorized  and 
empowered,  with  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners,  to  cause  said 
connection  to  be  removed  and  the  current  cut  off  upon  such  failure 
of  the  offending  person,  company,  or  corporation,  and  to  refuse  to 
permit  said  connection  to  be  replaced  and  the  current  to  be  used  until 
the  wiring  shall  be  put  in  proper  and  safe  condition. 

SEC.  5.  That  this  Act  shall  take  effect  ninety  days  from  and  after 
the  approval  thereof. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  supply  deficiencies,  etc.,  approved 
April  27,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  398). 

District  of  Columbia:  Electrical  Department.  The  head  of  each 
of  the  several  Executive  Departments  at  Washington,  wherein  electric 
plants  are  owned  by  the  Government,  is  hereby  authorized  and  direct- 
ed to  report  to  Congress  at  its  next  session  the  cost  of  electric  light 
and  power  produced  by  such  plants. 

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Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of 
the  Government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June 
thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  April 
27,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  374). 

Provided,  That  no  part  of  the  money  herein  appropriated  shall  be 
used  for  payment  to  any  telephone  company  doing  business  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  for  the  use  of  any  telephone  within  said  District, 
for  communicating  therefrom,  to  any  other  telephone  connected  to  a 
central  office  of  such  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  at  rates 
in  excess  of  the  following:  Sixty  dollars  per  annum  for  a  telephone 
on  an  individual  metallic  circuit,  forty-eight  dollars  per  annum  for 
each  telephone  on  the  same  premises,  there  being  not  more  than  two 
on  the  same  metallic  circuit,  and  no  contract  shall  be  made  with  any 
telephone  company  for  such  use  of  such  telephones  in  excess  of  the 
rates  herein  specified :  Provided,  That  until  the  population  of  the  city 
of  Washington  shall  be  three  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  or  over,  no 
more  than  the  above  specified  rates  shall  be  charged  by  any  telephone 
company  doing  business  in  the  District  of  Columbia  for  such  use  of 
such  telephones  at  private  residences  within  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  any  Acts  or  parts  of  Acts  heretofore  enacted  fixing  telephone  rates 
for  grounded  circuits  in  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  repealed : 
Provided  further,  That  the  refusal  of  the  company  to  comply  with  the 
provisions  of  this  Act  shall  be  a  misdemeanor,  and  such  refusal  shall 
subject  the  company  to  a  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  nor  more 
than  five  hundred  dollars  for  each  and  every  offense.  That  every 
telephone  company  doing  business  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
annually  on  or  before  the  15th  of  January  of  each  year  report  under 
oath  to  the  Congress  a  classified  statement  of  its  receipts  and  expendi- 
tures for  the  previous  calendar  year,  dividing  them  into  receipts  and 
expenditures  on  account  of  capital  as  well  as  income  and  operation  in 
the  District  of  Columbia,  and  that  such  report  for  the  first  year  shall 
state  the  actual  cost  of  their  works  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of  the 
government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June 
thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  April 
27,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  375). 

A  nd  pro  vided  further,  That  during  the  fiscal  year-  nineteen  hundred 
and  five  the  illuminating  power  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any  gas- 
lighting  company,  person  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
be  equal  to  twenty-two  candles,  notwithstanding  the  requirements  as 
to  candlepower  prescribed  by  section  three  of  the  Act  regulating  the 
sale  of  gas  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  6th,  eighteeen 
hundred  and  ninety-six. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of  the 
government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thir- 
tieth, nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  April  27, 
1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  376). 

Provided,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized,  in  their  discretion,  to  permit  the  Potomac  Electric 
Power  Company  to  make  connections  between  its  conduits  and  the 
conduits  of  the  Washington  Railway  and  Electric  Company  and  all 
other  companies  controlled  by  the  Washington  Railway  and  Electric 

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52' 

Company,  for  the  purpose  of  furnishing  electric  current  through  the 
said  conduits  for  public  and  private  uses,  the  use  of  said  railway 
companies'  conduits  to  be  upon  such  terms  as  may  be  agreed  upon 
between  the  said  companies. 

Extract  from  an  act  entitled  "An  act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the 
expenses  of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year 
ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  for  other  purposes," 
approved  April  27,  1904  (33  Stats.,  p.  372). 

For  the  reconstruction  of  the  Anacostia  bridge,  under  direction  of 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars,  and  the  said  Commissioners  are  authorized  to  enter  into  a  con- 
tract or  contracts  for  the  reconstruction  of  said  bridge,  to  be  com- 
pleted within  two  years  from  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  four, 
at  a  cost  not  to  exceed  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  to  be 
paid  from  time  to  time  as  appropriations  therefor  may  be  made  by 
law:  Provided,  That  the  Anacostia  and  Potomac  River  Railroad 
Company  shall  pay  the  entire  cost  of  the  pavement  between  the  ex- 
terior rails  of  its  tracks  on  said  bridge  and  for  a  distance  of  two  feet 
from  the  said  exterior  rails  of  said  tracks  on  each  side  thereof  and  the 
cost  of  the  entire  floor  system  supporting  said  pavement,  to  be  col- 
lected in  the  same  manner  as  the  cost  of  laying  pavements  between  the 
rails  and  tracks  of  street  railways  as  provided  for  in  section  five  of 
"An  Act  providing  a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the  District 
of  Columbia,"  approved  June  eleventh,  eighteen  hundred  and  seven- 
ty-eight and  paid  into  the  Treasury  one-half  to  the  credit  of  the 
United  States  and  one-half  to  the  credit  of  the  District  of  Columbia : 
Provided  further,  That  any  other  railroad  company  now  or  hereafter 
authorized  by  Congress  to  use  said  bridge  shall  have  the  right  to  use 
the  tracks  of  the  Anacostia  and  Potomac  River  Railroad  Company 
thereon  upon  such  reciprocal  trackage  and  such  compensation  as  may 
be  mutually  agreed  upon,  and  in  case  of  failure  to  reach  such  an 
agreement  that  the  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall, 
upon  petition  filed  by  either  party,  fix  and  determine  the  same.  And 
hereafter  one-half  of  the  cost  of  the  maintenance  and  repairs  of  this 
bridge  shall  be  borne  by  the  said  railway  company  or  companies,  and 
shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  the  cost  of  laying  pavements 
between  the  rails  and  tracks  of  street  railways,  and  paid  into  the 
Treasury,  as  provided  for  above. 

Extracts  from  an  act  entitled  "An  Act  Making  appropriations  for.  sundry  civil 
expenses  of  the  Government  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  nine- 
teen hundred  and  five,  and  for  other  purposes,"  approved  April  28,  1904  (33 
Stats.,  p.  479). 

Toward  the  construction  of  a  building  for  a  heating,  lighting,  and 
power  plant  in  connection  with  the  office  building  for  the  House  of 
Representatives,  the  installation  of  necessary  machinery,  for  labor  and 
material,  construction  of  ducts,  heating  mains,  subways,  and  traction 
system  connecting  the  Capitol  building,  and  for  all  other  appliances, 
and  for  each  and  every  purpose  in  connection  with  all  of  the  foregoing, 
one  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  said  build- 
ing for  heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant,  when  constructed,  shall  be 
of  sufficient  size  and  capacity  to  furnish  the  necessary  heat,  light,  and 
power  for  the  office  building  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  the 

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Capitol  building,  the  Congressional  Library  building,  and  for  such 
other  public  buildings  which  may  hereafter  be  erected  on  grounds 
adjacent  to  the  Capitol  grounds  at  the  east  of  the  Capitol  building 
and  facing  the  same :  Provided  further,  That  when  complete  and  ready 
for  operation  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  heat,  light,  and  power 
for  the  Capitol  building,  office  building  for  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, and  Congressional  Library  building,  the  total  cost  of  said 
heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant,  including  building  and  all  neces- 
sary apparatus,  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty- 
seven  thousand  eight  hundred  dollars,  and  that  of  the  subway  system 
connecting  the  Capitol  building,  the  sum  of  one  hir.idred  and  sixty- 
eight  thousand  five  hundred  dollars;  and  contracts  for  any  part  or 
the  whole  of  the  work  herein  provided  for  are  authorized  to  be 
entered  into  by  the  Superintendent  of  the  Capitol  Building  and 
Grounds,  who  shall  have  charge  of  the  construction  of  said  building 
and  equipment  and  subway  system,  and  the  employment  of  skilled  and 
other  services,  subject  to  the  direction  and  supervision  of  the  House 
Commission  appointed  to  direct  and  supervise  the  construction  of  the 
office  building  for  the  House  of  Representatives:  Provided  further, 
That  the  said  building  and  its  appurtenant  constructions  shall  be 
located  in  that  portion  of  reservation  seventeen  bounded  by  Virginia 
avenue  as  extended  through  said  reservation,  South  Capitol  street,  E 
street  south,  and  New  Jersey  avenue,  and  in  such  manner  that  the 
main  building  shall  not  project  beyond  the  building  lines  of  any  of 
the  streets  or  avenues  named;  and  a  siding  from  the  Philadelphia, 
Baltimore  and  Washington  Railroad  for  the  use  of  said  building,  in 
accordance  with  plans  approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District 
of  Columbia,  is  hereby  authorized  to  cross,  at  grade  or  otherwise,  the 
proposed  extension  of  Virginia  avenue  through  the  reservation :  And 
provided  further,  That  such  ducts,  heating  mains,  subways,  and  appli- 
ances may  be  constructed  in  and  across  any  public  street,  avenue,  alley, 
or  reservation  where  necessary  to  carry  out  the  purpose  of  this  pro- 
vision; and  when  same  shall  be  constructed  in  or  under  any  street, 
avehue,  or  alley  they  shall  be  located  under  plans  approved  by  the 
Engineer  Commissioner  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

******* 

POWER  HOUSE  FOR  PUBLIC  BUILDINGS  :  For  the  preparation,  by  the 
Superintendent  of  the  Library  Building  and  Grounds,  of  preliminary 
plans  and  estimates  of  cost  for  the  location,  construction,  and  equip- 
ment of  a  power  house  with  distributing  mains  for  heat,  steam,  and 
electric  power  to  the  existing  and  projected  Government  buildings  on 
the  Mall  and  in  the  vicinity  of  the  White  House,  said  Superintendent 
to  report  thereon  in  full  to  Congress  at  its  next  session,  five  thousand 

dollars. 

[PUBLIC  RESOLUTION — No.  2.] 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Granting  the  temporary  occupancy  of  a  part  of  the 
Government  reservation  in  Washington,  District  of  Columbia,  for  the  Amer- 
ican Railway  Appliance  Exhibition.  Approved  January  12,  1905  (33  Stats., 

fiesolved  l>y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Secretary  of  War 
is  hereby  authorized  to  grant  permits,  under  such  restrictions  as  he 
may  deem  necessary,  to  the  general  committee  of  arrangements  of  the 

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54 

American  Railway  Appliance  Exhibition,  to  be  given  in  connection 
with  the  meeting  of  the  International  Railway  Congress,  for  the  use 
of  such  portion  of  the  public  reservation  fronting  on  the  south  side 
of  B  street,  between  Fourteenth  street  and  the  Sixteenth  street  road- 
way northwest,  being  a  part  of  the  unimproved  portion  of  the  Monu- 
ment Grounds  in  the  city  of  Washington,  which,  in  his  opinion, 
will  inflict  no  serious  or  permanent  injuries  upon  said  reservation, 
to  continue  from  March  twentieth  to  May  twenty-fifth,  nineteen 
hundred  and  five, 'inclusive:  Provided,  however,  That  all  stands, 
platforms,  or  other  temporary  structures  that  may  be  erected  on  the 
space  aforesaid  shall  be  under  the  supervision  of  said  general  com- 
mittee of  arrangements  and  in  accordance  with  plans  to  be  approved 
by  the  officer  in  charge  of  public  buildings  and  grounds. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  be, 
and  are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit  said  general  committee  of 
arrangements  for  the  American  Railway  Appliance  Exhibition  to 
convey  to  such  reservation,  through  suitable  conductors,  wherever 
necessary,  and  in  the  nearest  practicable  connection  with  the  present 
supply  thereof,  gas,  steam,  and  electricity  for  power,  heat,  and  light, 
necessary  for  such  exhibition:  Provided,  That  said  conductors  shall 
not  be  used  for  the  conducting  of  steam  or  electric  current  after  May 
fifteenth,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  shall,  with  their  supports, 
be  fully  and  entirely  removed  from  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the  said 
city  of  Washington  on  or  before  May  twenty-fifth,  nineteen  hundred 
and  five :  'Provided  further,  That  the  work  of  conveying  such  con- 
ductors to  the  reservation  and  removing  of  said  conductors  shall  be 
in  accordance  with  plans  to  be  approved  by  and  under  the  super- 
vision of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  who  shall 
see  that  the  provisions  of  this  resolution  are  enforced,  and  that  all 
needful  precautions  are  taken  for  the  protection  of  the  public,  and 
that  the  pavement  of  any  street,  avenue,  or  alley  disturbed  is  replaced 
in  as  good  condition  as  before  entering  upon  the  work  herein  author- 
ized: Provided  further,  That  no  expense  or  damage  on  account  of 
or  due  to  the  conveying,  operation,  or  removal  of  the  said  temporary 
conductors  shall  be  incurred  by  the  United  States  or  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

'SEC.  3.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and 
are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit  said  general  committee  of  arrange- 
ments to  temporarily  occupy  parts  of  streets  with  tracks  and  switches 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  exhibitors  attending  said  exhibition; 
provided  that  such  temporary  occupation  shall  not  exceed  the  period 
of  sixty  days,  and  shall  be  subject  to  conditions  prescribed  by  said 
Commissioners. 

SEC.  4.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and 
are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Com- 
pany, the  Postal  Telegraph  Company,  and  the  Chesapeake  and  Poto- 
mac Telephone  Company  to  extend  overhead  wires  to  said  reservation 
and  to  such  points  thereon  as  shall  be  deemed  necessary  and  conven- 
ient by  said  general  committee  of  arrangements,  the  said  wires  to  be 
taken  down  within  ten  days  after  the  conclusion  of  the  meeting  of  the 
International  Railway  Congress  on  the  fourteenth  day  of  May,  nine- 
teen hundred  and  five. 

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SEC.  5.  That  said  general  committee  of  arrangements,  prior  to  the 
issuance  of  the  permits  hereinbefore  authorized,  shall  make  such 
necessary  deposits  with  the  collector  of  taxes,  District  of  Columbia, 
as  may  be  required  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
to  guarantee  the  removal  of  any  of  the  appurtenances  placed  in 
public  space  and  the  restoration  of  public  works  disturbed  by  such 
occupation,  and  said  general  committee  shall  also  by  proper  bond, 
approved  by  said  Commissioners,  save  the  District  of  Columbia  harm- 
less from  any  claim  for  damages  arising  in  any  manner  from  their 
occupation  of  public  space  under  this  Act. 

[PUBLIC  RESOLUTION — No.  3.] 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  Authorizing  the  granting  of  permits  to  the  committee 
on  inaugural  ceremonies  on  the  occasion  of  the  inauguration  of  the  President- 
elect on  March  fourth,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  so  forth.  Approved 
January  17,  1905  (33  Stats.,  p.  1276). 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Ignited 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  grant  a  permit  to  the 
committee  on  inaugural  ceremonies  for  the  use  of  the  Pension  Build- 
ing in  the  city  of  Washington  on  the  occasion  of  the  inauguration  of 
the  President-elect  on  the  fourth  day  of  March,  nineteen  hundred  and 
five,  subject  to  such  restrictions  and  regulations  as  the  said  Secretary 
may  prescribe  in  respect  of  the  period  and  manner  of  such  use,  includ- 
ing all  necessary  safeguards  against  fire  arid  for  the  extinguishing  of 
fire. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  Secretary  of  War  is  hereby  authorized  to  grant 
permits,  under  such  restrictions  as  he  may  deem  necessary,  to  the  com- 
mittee on  inaugural  ceremonies  for  the  use  of  any  reservations  or 
other  public  spaces  in  the  city  of  Washington  on  the  occasion  of  the 
inauguration  of  the  President-elect  on  the  fourth  day  of  March,  nine- 
teen hundred  and  five,  which,  in  his  opinion,  will  inflict  no  serious  or 
permanent  injuries  upon  such  reservations  or  public  spaces  or  statuary 
thereon,  and  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may 
designate  for  such  and  other  purposes  on  the  occasion  aforesaid  such 
streets,  avenues,  and  sidewalks  in  said  city  of  Washington  as  they 
may  deem  proper  and  necessary:  Provided,  however,  That  all  stands 
or  platforms  that  may  be  erected  on  the  public  spaces  aforesaid  shall 
be  under  the  supervision  of  the  said  inaugural  committee  and  in 
accordance  with  the  plans  and  designs  to  be  approved  by  the  Engineer 
Commissioner  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  officer  in  charge  of 
public  buildings  and  grounds,  and  the  Superintendent  of  the  United 
States  Capitol  Building  and  Grounds:  And  provided  further,  That 
the  reservations  or  public  spaces  occupied  by  the  stands  or  other 
structures  shall  be  restored  to  their  original  condition  before  such 
occupation,  and  that  the  inaugural  committee  shall  indemnify  the 
War  Department  for  any  damage  to  structures  of  any  kind  whatso- 
ever upon  such  reservation  or  spaces. 

SEC.  3.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized  to  permit  the  committee  on  illumination  of  the 
inaugural  committee  for  the  inaugural  ceremonies,  March,  nineteen 
hundred  and  five,  to  stretch  suitable  overhead  conductors,  with  suffi- 
cient supports  wherever  necessary  and  in  the  nearest  practicable  con- 

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nection  with  the  present  supply  of  light,  for  the  purpose  of  effecting 
the  said  illumination :  Pro  vided.  That  if  it  shall  be  necessary  to  erect 
wires  for  illumination  purposes  over  any  park  or  reservation  in  the 
District  of  Columbia,  the  work  of  erection  and  removal  of  said  wires 
shall  be  under  the  supervision  of  the  official  in  charge  of  said  park  or 
reservation:  Provided  further.  That  the  said  conductors  shall  not  be 
used  for  the  conveying  of  electrical  currents  after  March  seventh, 
nineteen  hundred  and  five,  and  shall,  with  their  supports,  be  fully  and 
entirely  removed  from  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the  said  city  of 
Washington  on  or  before  March  fifteenth,  nineteen  hundred  and  'five: 
Provided  further,  That  the  stretching  and  removing  of  the  said  wires 
shall  be  under  the  supervision  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  who  shall  see  that  the  provisions  of  this  resolution  are 
enforced ;  that  all  needful  precautions  are  taken  for  the  protection  of 
the  public,  and  that  the  pavement  of  any  street,  avenue,  or  alley  dis- 
turbed is  replaced  in  as  good  condition  as  before  entering  upon  the 
work  herein  authorized:  Provided  further,  That  no  expense  or  da*m- 
age  on  account  of  or  due  to  the  stretching,  operation,  or  removing  of 
the  said  temporary  overhead  conductors  shall  be  incurred  by  the 
United  States  or  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  4.  That  eighteen  thousand  dollars,  or  as  much  thereof  as  may 
be  necessary,  payable  from  any  money  in  the  Treasury  not  otherwise 
appropriated  and  from  the  revenues  of  the  District  of  Columbia  in 
equal  parts,  is  hereby  appropriated  to  enable  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  to  maintain  public  order  and  protect  life  and 
property  in  said  District  from  the  twenty-eighth  of  February  to  the 
tenth  of  March,  nineteen  hundred  and  five,  both  inclusive.  Said 
Commissioners  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  make  all  reason- 
able regulations  necessary  to  secure  such  preservation  of  public  order 
and  protection  of  life  and  property  and  fixing  fares  by  public  con- 
veyance and  to  make  special  regulations  respecting  the  standing, 
movements,  and  operating  of  vehicles  of  whatsoever  character  or  kind 
during  said  period.  Such  regulations  shall  be  in  force  one  week  prior 
to  said  inauguration,  during  said  inauguration,  and  one  week  subse- 
quent thereto,  and  shall  be  published  in  one  or  more  of  the  daily 
newspapers  published  in  the  District  of  Columbia;  and  no  penalty 
prescribed  for  the  violation  of  any  of  such  regulations  shall  be  en- 
forced until  five  days  after  such  publication.  Any  person  violating 
any  of  such  regulations  shall  be  liable  for  each  such  offense  to  a  fine 
not  to  exceed  one  hundred  dollars,  in  the  police  court  of  said  District, 
and  in  default  of  payment  thereof  to  imprisonment  in  the  workhouse 
of  said  District  for  not  longer  than  sixty  days.  And  the  sum  of  two 
thousand  dollars,  or  so  much  thereof  as  may  be  necessary,  is  hereby 
likewise  appropriated,  to  be  expended  by  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  for  the  construction,  maintenance,  and  expenses 
incident  to  the  operation  of  temporary  public-comfort  stations  ami 
information  booths  during  the  period  aforesaid. 

SEC.  5.  That  the  Secretary  of  War  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  loan  to  the  committee  on  inau- 
gural ceremonies  such  ensigns,  flags,  and  so  forth,  belonging  to  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  (except  battle  flags),  that  are  not 
now  in  use  and  may  be  suitable  and  proper  for  decoration  and  may,  in 
their  judgment,  be  spared  without  detriment  to  the  public  service, 

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such  flags  to  be  used  in  connection  with  said  ceremonies  by  said  com- 
mittee under  such  regulations  and  restrictions  as  may  be  prescribed  by 
the  said  Secretaries,  or  either  of  them,  in  decorating  the  fronts  of 
public  buildings  and  other  places  on  the  line  of  march  between  the 
Capitol  and  the  Executive  Mansion  and  the  interior  of  the  reception 
hall:  Provided,  That  the  loan  of  the  said  ensigns,  flags,  signal  num- 
bers, and  so  forth,  to  said  chairman  shall  not  take  place  prior  to  the 
twenty-fourth  day  of  February,  and  they  shall  be  returned  by  him  by 
the  tenth  day  of  March,  nineteen  hundred  and  five:  Provided  further. 
That  the  said  committee  shall  indemnify  the  said  Departments,  or 
either  of  them,  for  any  loss  or  damage  to  such  flags  not  necessarily 
incident  to  such  use.  That  the  Secretary  of  War  is  hereby  author- 
ized to  loan  to  the  inaugural  committee,  for  the  purpose  of  caring 
for  the  sick,  injured,  and  infirm  011  the  occasion  of  the  inauguration 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  March  fourth,  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  five,  such  hospital  tents  and  camp  appliances  and  other 
necessaries,  hospital  furniture,  and  utensils  of  all  descriptions,  ambu- 
lances, horses,  drivers,  stretchers,  and  Red  Cross  flags  and  poles 
belonging  to  the  Government  of  the  United  States  as  in*  his  judgment 
may  be  spared  and  are  not  in  use  by  the  Government  at  the  time  of 
the  inauguration:  Provided,  That  the  inaugural  committee  shall 
indemnify  the  War  Department  for  any  loss  or  damage  to  such  hospi- 
tal tents  and  appliances  as  aforesaid  not  necessarily  incident  to  such 
use:  And  provided  further,  That  the  said  inaugural  committee  shall 
give  bond,  with  security  satisfactory  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  to  do 
the  same. 

SEC.  6.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  be, 
and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  to  permit  the  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company  and  the  Postal  Telegraph  Company  to  extend 
overhead  wires  into  the  Pension  Building  and  to  such  points  along 
the  line  of  parade  as  shall  be  deemed  by  the  chief  marshal  convenient 
for  use  in  connection  with  the  parade  and  other  inaugural  purposes, 
the  said  wires  to  be  taken  down  within  ten  days  after  the  conclusion 
of  the  ceremonies  on  the  fourth  day  of  March,  nineteen  hundred  and 
five. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
hereby  authorized  to  issue  to  steam  railroad  companies  in  said  Dis- 
trict permits  to  temporarily  occupy  additional  parts  of  the  streets 
for  the  purpose  of  accommodating  the  traveling  public  attending-  the 
inaugural  ceremonies  in  March,  nineteen  hundred  and  five:  Provided, 
That  such  temporary  occupation  shall  not  exceed  the  period  of  fif- 
teen days  and  shall  be  subject  to  conditions  prescribed  by  said  Com- 
missioners :  Provided  further,  That  no  temporary  tracks  shall  be 
laid  upon  or  over  any  of  the  parks  of  the  city. 

[PUBLIC — No.   75.] 

AN  ACT  For  the  construction  of  a  private  conduit  across  I)  street  northwest. 
Approved,  February  17,  1905  (33  Stats.,  p.  719). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  author- 
ized to  grant  permission  to  S.  Kann,  Sons  and  Company  to  lay  a 
conduit  for  the  transmission  of  electric  power  and  a  pipe  for  the 

24757—08 5 


58 

transmission  of  steam  power  from  their  store  building  in  square  four 
hundred  and  thirty-two  to  their  store  building  in  square  four  hun- 
dred and  thirty-one  across  D  street,  between  Seventh  and  Eighth 
streets  northwest,  Washington,  District  of  Columbia,  under  the  regu- 
lations and  subject  to  the  limitations  prescribed  in  the  Act  entitled 
"An  Act  regulating  permits  for  private  conduits  in  the  District  of 
Columbia,"  approved  May  twenty-sixth,  nineteen  hundred. 

SEC.  2.  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal  this 
Act. 

[PUBLIC— No.  94.] 

AN  ACT  Permitting  the  Washington  Market  Company  to  lay  a  conduit  across 
Seventh  street  west.  Approved,  February  23,  1905  (33  Stats.,  p.  741). 

Be  it  enacted  l>y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  fhe  Washing- 
ton Market  Company  is  hereby  authorized  to  lay  a  conduit  and  pipes 
from  Center  Market  eastward  across  and  under  Seventh  street  west, 
for  refrigerating  purposes,  under  the  following  conditions,  namely: 
The  conduit  and  pipes  therein  shall  be  laid  in  a  straight  direction,  at 
a  right  angle  to  the  building  lines  of  said  Seventh  street,  to  the  west 
building  line  of  square  numbered  four  hundred  and  sixty-one  of  the 
city  of  Washington.  They  shall  be  located  as  directed  by  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  be  laid  under  their  inspec- 
tion; and  the  cost  of  such  inspection,  together  with  the  cost  of 
replacing  the  pavement,  curbs,  and  sidewalks  disturbed  in  connection 
with  said  work,  shall  be  paid  in  advance  by  the  Washington  Market 
Company.  The  conduit  and  pipes  shall  be  used  for  no  other  purpose 
than  refrigeration  for  the  use  of  persons  engaged  in  said  square  num- 
bered four  hundred  and  sixty-one  in  the  traffic  in  meat  and  other 
articles  of  market  produce;  and  the  said  company  shall  not  rent  or 
sell  the  said  conduit  or  pipes,  or  any  part  thereof,  but  may  sell  for  a 
time,  not  to  exceed  twelve  months  at  any  one  sale,  the  use  of  the  fluid 
transmitted. 

SEC.  2.  That  on  violation  of  any  of  the  above  provisions  or  restric- 
tions the  said  Commissioners  shall  require  the  permittee,  after  thirty 
days'  notice,  to  abandon  the  use  of  said  conduit  and  pipes  and  remove 
them  from  said  Seventh  street,  and  if  said  permittee  shall  neglect  or 
refuse  to  remove  said  conduit  and  pipes  and  place  the  surface  of  Sev- 
enth street,  including  the  sidewalks,  in  good  condition  within  sixty 
days  after  the  date  of  said  notice,  the  said  permittee  shall  be  deemed 
guilty  of  a  misdemeanor  and  shall  be  liable  to  a  fine  of  ten  dollars  for 
each  and  every  day  that  the  said  conduit  and  pipes,  or  any  of  them, 
are  allowed  to  remain  in  said  Seventh  street,  or  the  said  street  shall 
remain  out  of  repair,  which  fine  shall  be  recovered  in  the  police  court 
of  the  said  District,  in  the  name  of  said  District,  as  other  fines  and 
penalties  are  now  recovered  in  said  court. 

SEC.  3.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  amend,  alter,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

[PUBLIC — No.    145.] 

AN  ACT  To  authorize  the  Anacostia,  Surrattsville  and  Brandy  wine  Electric 
Railway  Company  to  extend  its  street  railway  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 
Approved  March  3,  1905  (33  Stats.,  p.  980). 

Be  it  enacted  ~by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Anacostia, 

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59 

Surrattsville  and  Brandywine  Electric  Railway  Company,  a  body 
incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Maryland,  be,  and  it  is 
hereby,  authorized  to  extend  its  line  of  street  railway  within  the 
District  of  Columbia,  with  single  or  double  tracks,  equip  and  operate 
the  same  for  the  carrying  of  passengers,  parcels,  milk,  garden  truck, 
and  other  small  freight,  with  the  necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  build- 
ings, and  necessary  mechanical  deAdces,  along  the  following-named 
route :  Beginning  where  the  Walker  road  intersects  the  line  dividing 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  Prince  George  County,  State  of  Mary- 
land, designated  on  the  map  of  the  District  of  Columbia ;  thence  along 
said  Walker  road  northwesterly  to  Goodhope,  District  of  Columbia; 
thence  westerly  along  Goodhope  road  as  designated  on  the  map  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  to  its  intersection  with  Harrison  street,  Ana- 
costia, District  of  Columbia;  thence  westerly  along  Harrison  street 
to  its  intersection  with  Monroe  street,  Anacostia,  District  of  Colum- 
bia, to  a  junction  with  the  street  railway  of  the  Anacostia  and  Poto- 
mac River  Railroad  Company:  Provided.  That  the  said  company 
shall  acquire  hereby  no  right  to  extend  its  said  railway  over,  along, 
or  upon  any  portion  of  the  aforementioned  route  which  is  not  now 
a  dedicated  road  or  street  of  the  said  District  until  it  shall  have 
obtained  the  written  consent  of  the  owners  of  the  real  property 
covered  thereby,  or  acquire  said  right  of  way  by  condemnation :  Pro- 
vided, That  when  the  route  described  coincides  with  that  of  a  county 
road  of  less  width  than  sixty  feet  the  railway  shall  be  constructed 
entirely  outside  the  road:  And  provided  further^  That  whenever 
said  road  shall  be  widened  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  are  authorized  to  require  that  the  tracks  of  said  railway 
company  shall  be  located  in  the  center  of  the  road  as  widened :  Pro- 
vided, That  if  at  any  time  in  the  future  any  part  of  the  right  of  way 
of  the  company  shall  be  included  within  the  lines  of  public  highways, 
such  part  of  the  said  right  of  way  shall  be  dedicated  to  the  public 
without  expense  to  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  Anacostia.  Surrattsville  and  Brandywine  Electric 
Railway  Company  and  the  Anacostia  and  Potomac  River  Railroad 
Company  shall  have  the  power  to  make  any  contracts  that  they  may 
deem  necessary  to  enable  the  said  companies  to  run  passenger  cars  of 
each  over  the  tracks  of  the  other  company,  and  also  to  contract  for 
and  use  the  power  of  each  or  either  company  to  propel  the  cars  of  the 
other  company.  That  in  case  of  failure  to  reach  an  agreement  upon 
terms  mutually  agreeable  to  each  of  said  companies,  then  the  supreme 
court  of  the  District  of'  Columbia  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to 
give  hearings  to  the  interested  parties  and  fix  the  terms  of  joint 
trackage.  Payments  for  the  use  of  the  tracks  shall  be  made  monthly, 
in  advance;  default  in  such  payments  shall  suspend  the  right  of  the 
company  to  use  the  tracks  until  such  payments  are  made;  that  the 
motive  power  shall  be  cable,  electric,  compressed  air,  or  mechanical 
power  other  than  steam  locomotive  power;  and  wherever  the  trolley 
system  is  used  a  return  wire,  similar  in  capacity,  situation,  and  insula- 
tion to  the  feed  wire,  shall  be  provided  for  the  current,  and  each  car 
shall  be  provided  with  a  double  trolley;  and  no  dynamo  furnishing 
power  to  the  road,  or  any  portion  thereof,  shall  have  either  of  its 
poles  connected  with  the  earth. 

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60 

SEC.  3.  That  all  plans  of  location  and  construction  shall  be  sub- 
jected to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  4.  That  excavations  in  the  highways  shall  be  made  only  under 
permits  from  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  sub- 
ject to  regulations  prescribed  by  them. 

SEC.  5.  That  the  said  railway  and  its  appurtenances  shall  be  con- 
structed in  a  substantial  and  durable  manner,  subject  to  inspection  by 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  All  changes  to 
existing  structures  in  public  space  shall  be  made  at  the  expense  of 
the  company. 

SEC.  G.  That  the  said  company  shall  deposit  such  sums  as  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  require  to  cover  the  cost 
of  inspection  and  the  cost  of  changes  to  public  works  in  the  streets 
caused  by  the  construction  of  said  railway. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  company  shall  keep  the  space  between  its  rails  and 
tracks  and  two  feet  exterior  thereto  in  good  condition,  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  pave- 
ment of  these  spaces  shall  be  at  least  as  good  as  that  of  the  contiguous 
roadway.  The  proper  authorities  shall  have  the  right  to  make 
changes  of  grade  and  other  improvements  which  they  may  deem  nec- 
essary, and  when  any  highway  occupied  by  the  company  is  improved 
the  company  shall  bear  the  entire  expense  of  improving  said  spaces 
to  correspond  with  the  remainder  of  the  roadway.  The  requirements 
of  this  section  shall  be  enforceable  under  the  provisions  of  section 
five  of  the  Act  providing  a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the 
District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  eleventh,  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy-eight. 

SEC.  8.  That  the  cars  shall  be  first-class  and  shall  be  kept  in  good 
condition,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  9.  That  the  cars  shall  be  run  as  often  as  public  convenience 
requires,  on  a  time-table  satisfactory  to  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia. 

SEC.  10.  That  the  speed  of  the  cars  shall  be  subject  to  the  police 
regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  11.  That  persons  drunk,  disorderly,  contagiously  diseased,  or 
refusing  to  pay  the  legal  fare  may  be  ejected  from  the  cars  by  the 
officers  in  charge  thereof. 

SEC.  12.  That  as  far  as  possible  articles  left  in  the  cars  shall  be 
cared  for  by  the  company,  to  the  end  that  they  may  be  returned  to  the 
rightful  owner. 

SEC.  13.  That  the  rate  of  fare  which  may  be  charged  for  the  trans- 
portation of  passengers  over  the  line  of  said  company  within  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  shall  not  exceed  five  cents  per  passenger,  and  six 
tickets  shall  be  sold  for  twenty-five  cents. 

SEC.  14.  That  the  company  is  authorized  to  erect  and  maintain  the 
buildings  necessary  to  the  operation  of  this  road,  subject  to  the  build- 
ing regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  company  shall  erect 
and  maintain  passenger  rooms  and  transfer  stations  as  required  by  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  All  passenger  rooms  and 
transfer  stations  shall  be  provided  with  such  conveniences  for  the 
public  as  said  Commissioners  may  direct. 

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61 

SEC.  15.  That  the  said  company,  through  its  proper  officers,  shall 
annually,  on  or  before  August  first,  make  return  under  oath  to  the 
board  of  personal  tax  appraisers  of  the  District  of  Columbia  of  the 
amount  of  its  gross  receipts  in  the  District  of  Columbia  during  the 
preceding  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  and  shall  pay  to  the  collector  of 
taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same 
manner  as  other  personal  taxes  are  paid,  an  amount  equal  to  four  per 
centum  per  annum  thereon  in  lieu  of  other  personal  taxes;  that  the 
real  estate  of  the  said  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be 
assessed  and  taxed  as  is  other  real  estate  in  said  District. 

SEC.  16.  That  nothing  in  this  Act  shall  prevent  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia, at  any  time,  at  its  option,  from  altering  the  grade  of  any  ave- 
nue, street,  or  highway  occupied  by  said  railway,  or  from  altering 
and  improving  streets,  avenues,  highways,  and  the  sewerage  thereof; 
and  the  company  shall  change  its  railway  construction  and  pavements 
so  as  to  conform  to  such  grades  and  improvements  as  may  have  been 
or  may  be  established. 

SEC.  17.  That  said  company  is  authorized  to  construct  and  operate, 
for  its  own  use  only,  telegraph  and  telephone  lines  along  its  railway, 
as  herein  provided  for,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners 
of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  18.  That  the  construction  of  said  extension  on  the  lines  of  said 
railway  company  within  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  commenced 
within  one  year  of  the  passage  of  this  Act,  and  be  completed  and  cars 
running  thereupon  for  passenger  traffic  within  two  years  from  the 
passage  of  this  Act,  in  default  of  which  this  Act  shall  be  void  and  of 
no  effect. 

SEC.  19.  That  all  the  conditions,  requirements,  and  obligations 
imposed  by  this  Act  shall  be  complied  with  by  any  of  the  successors 
to  and  assigns  of  said  company  within  said  District. 

SEC.  20.  That  within  sixty  days  from  the  approval  of  this  Act,  the 
company  shall  deposit  one  thousand  dollars  with  the  collector  of  taxes 
of  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  guarantee  the  construction  of  this  rail- 
road within  the  prescribed  time,  and  if  this  sum  is  not  so  deposited 
this  Act  shall  be  null  and  void.  If  the  sum  is  so  deposited,  and  the 
road  is  not  in  operation  as  herein  prescribed,  said  one  thousand  dol- 
lars shall  be  forfeited  to  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  this  Act  shall 
be  void. 

SEC.  21.  That  the  construction,  adoption  of  motive  power,  erection 
of  buildings,  regulation  of  schedule  and  speed  of  running  shall  be  at 
all  times  under  the  supervision  and  control  of  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  22.  That  each  and  every  violation  of  §the  requirements  of  this 
Act,  or  of  the  regulations  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  made  under  the  authority  thereof,  shall  be  punishable  by  a 
fine  of  from  twenty-five  to  one  thousand  dollars,  in  the  discretion  of 
the  court,  such  fines  to  be  collectible  in  any  court  of  competent  juris- 
diction as  other  fines  and  penalties  are  collected  in  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  23.  That  the  Anacostia,  Surra  ttsville  and  Brandy  wine  Elec- 
tric Railway  Company  shall  have  the  right  of  way  across  such  other 
railways  as  are  now  in  operation  within  the  limits  of  the  lines  granted 
by  this  Act,  and  is  hereby  authorized  to  construct  its  said  road  across 

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such  other  railways:  Provided,  That  it  shall  not  interrupt  the  travel 
of  such  other  railways  in  such  construction. 

SEC.  24.  That  the  company  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  Feb- 
ruary in  each  year,  make  a  report  to  each  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives,  as  prescribed  in  section  ten  of  the  Act  of  June  tenth, 
eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  entitled  "An  Act  to  extend  the  routes 
of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home  Railway  Company,  and  of  the 
Belt  Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other 
purposes." 

SEC.  25.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

L  PUBLIC — No.  148.] 

AN  ACT  Regulating  the  use  of  telegraph  wires  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 
Approved  March  3,  1905  (S3  Stats.,  p.  984). 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  all  telegraph 
poles  and  the  wires  attached  thereto,  not  the  property  of  the  United 
States  or  the  District  of  Columbia,  now  upon  the  streets,  avenues,  and 
alleys  within  the  fire  limits  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  except  as 
hereinafter  provided,  shall  from  time  to  time,  as  may  be  prescribed  by 
the  Commissioners  of  said  District,  be  taken  down  and  removed. 
The  work  of  taking  down  and  removing  said  poles  and  wires  shall  be 
done  under  the  direction  of  said  Commissioners,  and  it  is  hereby  made 
the  duty  of  said  Commissioners  to  enforce  compliance  with  the  provi- 
sions of  this  Act  as  expeditiously  as  may  be  consistent  with  the  public 
interests;  and  the  said  Commissioners  are  hereby  empowered,  from 
time  to  time,  to  authorize  any  company  or  corporation  now  or  here- 
after operating  and  maintaining  a  telegraph  plant  or  system  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  to  locate  and  construct  a  system  of  underground 
conduits,  subsidiaries,  and  manholes  in  or  under  any  or  all  of  the 
streets,  avenues,  alleys,  lanes,  or  other  public  highways  in  said  Dis- 
trict, as  may  be  requisite  and  necessary  for  the  purpose  of  this  Act 
and  for  the  reception  of  .such  other  conduits,  cables,  and  wires  may 
be  reasonably  required  in  the  future  by  the  growth  of  such  company 
or  corporation  or  its  assigns,  or  to  adequately  meet  the  requirements 
of  the  public  for  telegraph  service. 

SEC.  2.  That  upon  the  approval  of  this  Act,  and  from  time  to  time 
thereafter,  any  company  or  corporation,  or  its  assigns,  now  or  here- 
after maintaining  and  operating  a  telegraph  plant  or  system  in  said 
District,  shall  prepare  and  submit  to  the  said  Commissioners  a  plan  or 
plans  or  application  or  applications,  in  writing,  showing  the  streets, 
avenues,  alleys,  lanes,  and  other  public  highways  in  or  under  which 
it  is  proposed  to  construct  conduits,  subsidiaries,  or  manholes,  and 
giving  the  general  dimensions,  length,  and  course  thereof ;  and  before 
any  such  conduit,  subsidiary,  or  manhole  is  constructed  it  shall  be 
necessary  to  obtain  the  approval  and  permission  of  said  Commission- 
ers. Said  Commissioners  are  empowered  to  require  that  all  proposed 
conduits,  subsidiaries,  and  manholes  shall  be  constructed  in  accord- 
ance with  the  approved  plan  or  permit;  and  upon  the  approval  by 
said  Commissioners  of  any  such  plan,  or  the  issuing  of  any  such  per- 
mit, providing  for  the  construction  of  underground  conduits,  subsid- 
iaries, or  manholes  within  the  said  limits  described  in  section  one  of 

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this  Act,  or  in  such  part  thereof  as  said  Commissioners  shall  require 
and  direct,  the  construction  therein  provided  for  shall  be  proceeded 
with  diligently,  and  upon  the  completion  thereof,  or  as  soon  thereafter 
as  may  be  without  impairing  the  efficiency  of  the  telegraph  service  in 
said  District,  the  company  or  corporation  constructing  such  conduits, 
subsidiaries,  or  manholes  shall  place  its  cables  and  wires  therein  and 
take  down  and  remove  from  the  streets  and  avenues  in  which  such 
conduits  are  constructed  all  poles  and  the  wires  thereon,  except  such 
as  said  Commissioners  may,  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this 
Act,  permit  to  remain  for  the  purpose  of  distributing  wires  for  house 
or  other  connections. 

SEC.  3.  That  any  company  or  corporation  now  or  hereafter  owning 
and  maintaining  such  poles  and  wires  attached  thereto  on  or  over  any 
street  or  avenue  within  the  said  limits  described  in  section  one  of  this 
Act,  which  shall  willfully  neglect  or  refuse  to  remove  the  same,  as 
provided  in  section  two  hereof,  shall  be  liable  to  a  penalty  of  not  more 
than  twenty-five  dollars  for  each  and  every  day  during  which  such 
failure  to  remove  said  poles  and  wires  shall  continue,  which  amount 
may  be  recovered  by  the  District  of  Columbia  in  any  court  of  com- 
petent jurisdiction. 

SEC.  4.  That  said  Commissioners  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  empow- 
ered to  authorize  the  erection  and  maintenance  of  poles  in  the  alleys 
of  said  District,  and  the  stringing  thereon  of  wires  or  conductors  for 
telegraph  purposes  from  alley  poles  or  house-top  fixtures  in  one 
square  to  alley  poles  or  house-top  fixtures  in  another  square  for  the 
purpose  of  enabling  house  connections  to  be  made,  and  to  authorize 
the  erection  of  poles  and  the  stringing  thereon  of  wires  on  and  upon 
the  streets  and  avenues  of  said  District  in  the  parts  thereof  in  which 
there  are  no  public  alleys  and  in  such  places  as  the  public  interests  do 
not  require  that  the  lines  be  placed  underground,  or  in  places  wher^  it 
shall  be  deemed  by  said  Commissioners  impracticable  to  advanta- 
geously place  or  operate  such  lines  underground.  During  the  prog- 
ress of  the  work  provided  for  in  section  one  of  this  Act  said  Commis- 
sioners are  also  empowered  to  issue  temporary  permits  for  the  erection 
and  maintenance  of  poles  and  overhead  conductors  in  places  wThere 
the  lines  are  ultimately  to  be  placed  underground,  where  the  work  can 
not  be  immediately  done  because  of  the  greater  urgency  of  work  in 
other  localities,  or  for  other  reasons  satisfactory  to  said  Commis- 
sioners; but  in  issuing  such  temporary  permits  said  Commissioners 
shall  bear  in  mind  the  purpose  and  policy  of  this  Act,  which  is  to 
cause  to  be  removed  from  the  streets  and  avenues  within  the  said 
limits  described  in  section  one  of  this  Act  all  poles  and  wires  attached 
thereto,  except  as  hereinbefore  provided,  as  expeditiously  as  may  be 
without  interfering  with  or  impairing  the  efficiency  of  the  telegraph 
service  in  said  District  and  without  denying  to  the  public  reasonable 
telegraph  facilities. 

SEC.  4a.  That  any  officer  of  the  United  States  Government  charged 
with  the  care,  maintenance,  and  supervision  of  any  public  park  or  res- 
ervation may  grant  permission  to  any  company  or  corporation  now  or 
hereafter  maintaining  and  operating  a  telegraph  plant  or  system  in 
said  District,  upon  application  being  made  therefor,  to  contract  con- 
duits, subsidiaries,  or  manholes  in  said  park  or  reservation,  under  such 
reasonable  regulations  as  said  officer  may  prescribe,  unless,  in  the 

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64 

judgment  of  said  officer,  said  construction  will  result  in  injury  to  the 
United  States  or  its  properties. 

SEC.  5.  That  all  subways,  conduits,  manholes,  and  overhead  lines 
constructed  or  erected  under  the  provisions  of  this  Act  shall  be  subject 
to  such  reasonable  regulations  as  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  may  from  time  to  time  prescribe  as  to  inspection,  location, 
character  of  conduit  construction,  and  height  of  poles  and  wires :  Pro- 
vided^ That  in  all  underground  conduits  so  constructed  such  space 
shall  be  furnished  to  the  said  District  of  Columbia  and  the  United 
States  as  may  be  necessary  for  their  telegraph,  fire  alarm,  and  police- 
patrol  wires  or  cables  carrying  low  potential  currents  of  electricity, 
free  of  charge:  And  provided  further,  That  the  number  of  ducts  so 
reserved  in  any  one  conduit  shall  not  be  more  than  two. 

SEC.  6.  That  the  said  Commissioners  are  empowered  to  authorize 
any  such  company  or  corporation  now  or  hereafter  owning  and  oper- 
ating lines  of  street  poles  and  wires,  and  any  alley  poles  or  alley-pole 
line  or  house-top  wires  within  the  said  District  and  outside  of  the 
limits  described  in  section  one  of  this  Act  to  continue  to  maintain  the 
same,  with  such  repairs  and  renewals  as  may  be  necessary  to  keep 
them  in  good  order  and  condition  of  repair,  and  to  add  thereto  such 
poles  and  wires  as  may  be  necessary  for  their  telegraphic  purposes. 

SEC.  7.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act,  but  nothing  herein  shall  abridge  or  lessen  the  rights  granted 
telegraph  companies  under  title  sixty-five,  section  fifty-two  hundred 
and  sixty-three  and  the  following,  United  States  Revised  Statutes. 

SEC.  8.  That  if  at  any  time  the  District  of  Columbia  or  the  National 
Government  shall  acquire,  by  purchase,  condemnation  proceedings,  or 
otherwise,  the  property  of  any  telegraph  company  in  the  District  of 
Columbia,  nothing  shall  then  be  paid  for  the  rights  accorded  under 
this  bill  to  build  and  lay  such  conduits. 

Extracts  from  an  Act  entitled  "An  Act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for 
the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal 
year  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  six,  and  for  other  purposes," 
approved  March  3,  1905  (33  Stats.,  p.  893). 

Provided,  That  the  time  within  which  said  bridge  shall  be  con- 
structed is  extended  to  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  and  seven :  And 
provided  further,  That  in  addition  to  the  requirements  heretofore 
made  as  to  the  payment  for  a  portion  of  said  work  upon  said  bridge 
by  the  Anacostia  a-nd  Potomas  River  Railroad  Company,  said  com- 
pany shall,  when  directed  by  the  said  Commissioners,  deposit  with 
the  collector  of  taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  the  credit  of 
the  appropriation  for  the  reconstruction  of  said  bridge,  the  sum  of 
three  thousand  three  hundred  dollars,  to  defray  the  cost  of  such 
underfloor  construction  as  may  be  necessary  in  order  that  the  cars  of 
said  company  may  be  propelled  over  said  bridge  by  underfloor  elec- 
trical conductors  or  cables,  and  the  entire  cost  of  maintenance  of  said 
underfloor  construction  shall  thereafter  be  borne  b}7  said  railroad 
company,  and  no  cars  shall  be  propelled  across  said  bridge  unless  all 
electrical  conductors  or  cables  furnishing  power  for  the  propulsion 
of  the  same  shall  be  placed  under  floor  of  said  bridge. 

******* 

Provided*  That  no  more  than  twenty  dollars  per  annum  shall  be 
paid  for  each  gas  lamp  equipped  writh  a  self-regulating  flat-flame 


2475' 


65 

burner  so  adjusted  as  to  secure  under  all  ordinary  variations  of  pres- 
sure and  density  a  consumption  of  five  cubic  feet  of  gas  per  hour, 
nor  more  than  twenty-six  dollars  per  annum  for  each  gas  or  oil  lamp 
equipped  with  an  incandescent  mantle  burner  of  not  less  than  sixty 
candlepower.  And  during  the  fiscal  year  nineteen  hundred  and  six 
the  price  prescribed  by  Congress  for  lighting  each  street  lamp  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  with  gas  or  oil  shall  be  construed  to  include 
the  cost  of  the  illuminating  material  used,  lighting  and  extinguishing 
lamps,  repairing,  painting,  cleaning,  purchasing,  and  expense  of 
erecting  and  maintaining  lamp-posts,  street  designations,  lanterns, 
and  fixtures:  Provided,  That  all  of  said  lamps  shall  burn  every  night, 
on  the  average,  from  fifteen  minutes  after  sunset  to  forty-five  min- 
utes before  sunset:  And  provided  further,  That  the  Commissioner? 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  purchase,  erect,  light,  and  maintain 
such  posts,  lanterns,  signs,  and  fixtures  for  street  designation  pur- 
poses,  in  addition  to  those  mentioned  above,  as  in  their  judgment  may 
be  necessary,  which  lamps  shall  not  be  subject  to  the  restrictions  of 
this  paragraph  except  as  to  the  time  of  burning:  And  provided  fur- 
ther, That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby 
authorized  and  empowered,  in  their  discretion,  to  enter  into  one- 
year  or  three-year  contracts  for  any  one  of  the  above  systems  of  light- 
ing by  gas  or  oil  lamps  equipped  with  incandescent  mantle  burners 
of  not  less  than  sixty  candlepower;  and  hereafter  the  illuminating 
power  of  gas  furnished  by  any  gas-lighting  company,  person,  or 
persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  equal  to  twenty-two 
candles. 

Extract  from  an  act  making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of  the 
Government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June 
thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  six,  and  for  other  purposes,  approved  March 
3,  1905. 

And  provided  further,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered,  in  their  discretion, 
to  enter  into  one-year  or  three-year  contracts  for  any  one  of  the  above 
systems  of  lighting  by  gas  or  oil  lamps  equipped  with  incandescent 
mantle  burners  of  not  less  than  sixty  candlepower;  and  hereafter  the 
illuminating  power  of  gas  furnished  by  any  gas-lighting  company, 
person,  or  persons  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  equal  to 
twenty-two  candles. 

Extract  from  an  act  entitled  "An  act  making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil 
expenses  of  the  Government  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  nine- 
teen hundred  and  six,  and  for  other  purposes,"  approved  March  3,  1905  (33 
Stats.,  p.  1193). 

For  removing  cables  of  lines  from  the  roof  of  the  Treasury  Depart- 
ment building  and  placing  them  under  ground,  one  thousand  two  hun- 
dred dollars:  and  authority  is  hereby  granted  for  laying  the  neces- 
sary conduits  under  the  streets,  avenues,  and  sidewalks  of  the  city  for 
that  purpose. 

Extract  from  urgent  deficiency  bill,  approved  February  27,  1906. 

HEATING,  LIGHTING,  AND  POWER  PLANT:  The  limit  of  cost  of  the 
heating,  lighting,  and  power  plant,  authorized  and  provided  for  under 
the  sundry  civil  Act  approved  April  twenty-eighth,  nineteen  hundred 

24757 


66 

and  four,  is  hereby  extended  so  that  when  said  plant  shall  have  been 
completed  and  of  sufficient  size  and  capacity  to  furnish  heat,  light, 
and  power  for  the  office  building.  House  of  Representatives,  the 
Capitol  building,  the  Congressional  Library  building,  the  office  build- 
ing, United  States  Senate,  and  for  such  other  buildings  as  may  here- 
after be  erected  on  grounds  adjacent  to  the  Capitol  grounds  at  the 
east  of  the  Capitol  building  and  facing  the  same,  the  total  expendi- 
ture shall  not  exceed  one  million  three  hundred  and  ninety-three 
thousand  dollars ;  and  contracts  for  any  part  or  the  whole  of  the  work 
herein  provided  for  under  said  extended  limit  of  cost  are  authorized 
to  be  entered  into  by  the  Superintendent  of  the  Capitol  Building  and 
Grounds,  under  the  terms  of  the  Act  aforesaid. 

SUBWAY  SYSTEM  :  For  the  construction  of  a  subway  system  to  con- 
nect the  office  building  of  the  United  States  Senate  with  the  Capitol 
building  an  expenditure  not  to  exceed  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight 
thousand  five  hundred  dollars  is  hereby  authorized ;  and  contracts  for 
said  subway  system  are  authorized  to  be  entered  into  within  said  sum 
by  the  Superintendent  of  the  Capitol  Building  and  Grounds  under  the 
supervision  of  the  Commission  on  the  Senate  office  building  created 
by  the  sundry  civil  Act,  approved  April  twenty-eighth,  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  four,  subject  to  appropriations  to  be  hereafter  made  by 
Congress. 

Extract  from  act  approved  June  27,  1906,  making  appropriations  to  provide  for 
,  the  expenses  of  the  Government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year 

ending  June  30,  1907,  and  for  other  purposes. 

• 

LIGHTING:  For  illuminating  material,  lighting,  extinguishing,  re- 
pairing, and  cleaning  public  lamps  on  avenues,  streets,  roads,  and 
alleys;  purchasing  and  expense  of  erecting  and  maintaining  new 
lamp-posts,  street  designations,  lanterns,  and  fixtures;  moving  lamp- 
posts, painting  lamp-posts  and  lanterns;  replacing  and  repairing 
lamp-posts  and  lanterns  damaged  or  unfit  for  service;  for  rent  of 
storeroom,  cartage  of  material,  livery,  and  other  necessary  items,  two 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars:  Provided.  That  no  more  than 
eighteen  dollars  per  annum  shall  be  paid  for  each  gas  lamp  equipped 
with  a  self -regulating  flat-flame  burner  so  adjusted  as  to  secure  under 
all  ordinary  variations  of  pressure  and  density  a  consumption  of  five 
cubic  feet  of  gas  per  hour,  nor  more  than  twenty-five  dollars  per 
annum  for  each  gas  or  oil  lamp  equipped  with  an  incandescent  mantle 
burner  of  not  less  than  sixty  candlepower.  And  during  the  fiscal 
year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven  the  price  prescribed  by  Congress  for 
lighting  each  street  lamp  in  the  District  of  Columbia  with  gas  or  oil 
shall  be  construed  to  include  the  cost  of  the  illuminating  material 
used,  lighting  and  extinguishing  lamps,  repairing,  p'ainting,  cleaning, 
purchasing,  and  expense  of  erecting  and  maintaining  lamp-posts, 
street  designations,  lanterns,  and  fixtures:  Provided.  That  all  of  said 
lamps  shall  burn  ever}^  night,  on  the  average,  from  fifteen  minutes 
after  sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise:  And  provided  fur- 
ther, That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  pur- 
chase, erect,  light,  and  maintain  such  posts,  lanterns,  signs,  and 
fixtures,  for  street  designation  purposes,  in  addition  to  those  men- 
tioned above,  as  in  their  judgment  may  be  necessary,  which  lamps 
shall  not  be  subject  to  the  restrictions  of  this  paragraph  except  as  to 

24757 


67 

the  time  of  burning:  And  provided  further,  That  the  Commissioners 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered, 
in  their  discretion,  to  enter  into  one-year  or  three-year  contracts  for 
any  one  of  the  above  systems  of  lighting  by  gas  or  oil  lamps  equipped 
with  incandescent  mantle  burners  of  not  less  than  sixty  candlepower. 
For  electric  arc  lighting,  and  for  extensions  of  such  service,  not 
exceeding  ninety-five  thousand  dollars :  Provided,  That  not  more  than 
eight3T-five  dollars  per  annum  shall  be  paid  for  any  electric  arc  light 
burning  from  fifteen  minutes  after  sunset  to  forty- five  minutes  before 
sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by  means  of  underground  wire;  and 
each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one  thousand  actual  candle- 
power,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shall  be  used  for  electric 
lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or  over  any  of  the 
streets  or  avenues  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

AN  ACT  Making  appropriations  for  sundry  civil  expenses  of  the  Government 
for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  seven,  and  for 
other  purposes.  Approved  June  30,  1906. 

For  lighting  twenty-seAren  arc  lights  in  Potomac  Park  driveway, 
at  not  exceeding  eighty-five  dollars  per  light  per  annum,  which  sum 
shall  cover  the  entire  cost  of  installing,  lighting,  and  maintaining  in 
good  order  each  electric  light  on  said  driveway,  and  authority  for 
laying  single-duct  conduits  through  public  grounds  and  making  con- 
nections for  said  lights  is  hereby  granted,  two  thousand  two  hundred 
and  ninety-five  dollars,  one-half  of  which  sum  shall  be  paid  from  the 
revenues  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  other  half  from  the 
Treasury  of  the  United  States. 

[PUBLIC — No.  169.] 

AN  ACT  Making  appropriations  to  provide  for  the  expenses  of  the  government 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen 
hundred  and  eight,  and  for  other  purposes.  Approved  March  2,  1907. 

LIGHTING  :  For  illuminating  material,  lighting,  extinguishing,  re- 
pairing, and  cleaning  public  lamps  on  avenues,  streets,  roads,  and 
alleys;  purchasing  and  expense  of  erecting  and  maintaining  new 
lamp-posts,  street  designations,  lanterns,  and  fixtures;  moving  lamp- 
posts, painting  lamp-posts  and  lanterns;  replacing  and  repairing 
lamp-posts  and  lanterns  damaged  or  unfit  for  service ;  for  rent  of 
storeroom,  cartage  of  material,  livery,  and  other  necessary  items,  two 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  no  more  than 
eighteen  dollars  per  annum  shall  be  paid  for  each  gas  lamp  equipped 
with  a  self-regulating  flat-flame  burner  so  adjusted  as  to  secure  under 
all  ordinary  variations  of  pressure  and  density  a  consumption  of  five 
cubic  feet  of  gas  per  hour,  nor  more  than  twenty  dollars  and  eighty- 
five  cents  per  annum  for  each  gas  and  twenty-two  dollars  and  eighty 
cents  per  annum  for  each  oil  lamp  equipped  with  an  incandescent 
mantle  burner  of  not  less  than  sixty  candlepower.  And  during  the 
fiscal  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight  the  price  prescribed  by  Con- 
gress for  lighting  each  street  lamp  in  the  District  of  Columbia  with 
gas  or  oil  shall  be  construed  to  include  the  cost  of  the  illuminating 
material  used,  lighting  and  extinguishing  lamps,  repairing,  painting, 
cleaning,  purchasing,  and  expense  of  erecting  and  maintaining  lamp- 
posts, street  designations,  lanterns,  and  fixtures:  Provided,  That  all 

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68 

of  said  lamps  shall  burn  every  night,  on  the  average,  from  fifteen 
minutes  after  sunset  to  forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise:  And  pro- 
vided further,  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
may  purchase,  erect,  light,  and  maintain  such  posts,  lanterns,  signs, 
and  fixtures  for  street  designation  purposes,  in  addition  to  those 
mentioned  above,  as  in  their  judgment  may  be  necessary,  which  lamps 
shall  not  be  subject  to  the  restrictions  of  this  paragraph  except  as  to 
the  time  of  burning :  Provided,  That  any  association  or  corporation 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  gas  for  illuminating  and  fuel 
purposes  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  through  its  president  or  other 
duly  authorized  officer,  shall  make  a  sworn  statement  to  Congress  an- 
nually, on  or  before  the  first  day  of  February  in  each  year.  Said 
report  shall  contain  a  detailed  statement  of  the  condition  of  the  busi- 
ness of  said  association  or  corporation  for  the  year  ending  December 
thirty-first  next  preceding,  and  such  statement  shall  set  forth  the 
actual  cost  and  also  present  value  of  the  property  of  such  association 
or  corporation  used  in  the  conduct  of  its  business,  the  amount  of  paid 
up  capital  stock,  the  amount  and  character  of  the  indebtedness  of 
such  association  or  corporation,  the  amount  and  cost  of  materials  used 
in  making  gas,  the  amount  of  gas  manufactured,  the  amount  of  gas 
sold,  the  average  price  per  thousand  cubic  feet  received  for  gas  sold, 
the  revenue  from  the  sale  of  all  by-products,  the  revenues  from  all 
other  sources,  the  extensions  and  improvements  made  in  the  plant  and 
works,  the  actual  cost  of  the  same,  the  amount  expended 'for  labor,  the 
amount  set  aside  for  depreciation,  the  amount  set  apart  for  insurance 
and  renewals,  the  amount  paid  out  of  earnings  for  betterments,  the 
amount  paid  for  betterments  from  other  sources,  the  amount  set  aside 
and  paid  in  interest  and  dividends,  the  surplus  after  paying  the  oper- 
ating expenses  and  fixed  charges,  the  statement  of  the  operating 
expenses  to  be  itemized  and  classified  as  is  done  by  other  public  utility 
corporations,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  names  of  the  stock- 
holders and  the  amount  of  stock  held  in  such  association  or  corpora- 
tion by  each  of  them  on  December  thirty-first  next  preceding  the  date 
of  such  report. 

Any  such  association  or  corporation,  'not  later  than  the  fourth  day 
of  December  in  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven  shall  make  to 
Congress  a  sworn  report  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  this 
provision  and  showing  the  condition  of  its  business  as  near  as  its  pres- 
ent method  of  bookkeeping  will  permit  for  the  year  ending  December 
thirty-first,  nineteen  hundred  and  six. 

For  electric  arc  lighting,  and  for  extensions  of  such  service,  not 
exceeding  one  hundred  thousand  five  hundred  dollars:  Provided, 
That  not  more  than  eighty-five  dollars  per  annum  shall  be  paid  for 
any  electric  arc  light  burning  from  fifteen  minutes  after  sunset  to 
forty-five  minutes  before  sunrise,  and  operated  wholly  by  means  of 
underground  wire;  and  each  arc  light  shall  be  of  not  less  than  one 
thousand  actual  candlepower,  and  no  part  of  this  appropriation  shalJ 
be  used  for  electric  lighting  by  means  of  wires  that  may  exist  on  or 
over  any  of  the  streets  or  avenues  in  the  city  of  Washington:  Pro- 
vided further,  That  any  unexpended  balances  not  to  exceed  in  all  ten 
thousand  dollars  of  the  appropriation  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  thou- 
sand dollars  for  lighting,  and  of  the  appropriation  of  ninety-five 
thousand  dollars  for  electrical  arc  lighting,  provided  in  the  District 

24757 


69 

appropriation  Act  for  the  fiscal  year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven, 
shall  continue  and  be  available  for  the  services  of  the  fiscal  year  end- 
ing June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  and  eight,  for  the  lighting  pur- 
poses designated  under  said  appropriation  in  said  Act:  Provided, 
That  any  company,  association  or  corporation  engaged  in  the  manu- 
facture and  sale  of  electricity  for  illuminating  or  heating  or  power 
purposes,  or  either,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  through  its  president 
or  other  duly  authorized  officer,  shall  make  a  sworn  statement  to  Con- 

fress  annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  February  in  each  year, 
aid  report  shall  contain  a  detailed  statement  of  the  condition  of  the 
business  of  said  company,  association  or  corporation  for  the  year  end- 
ing December  thirty-first  next  preceding,  and  such  statement  shall  set 
forth  the  actual  cost  and  also  present  value  of  the  property  of  such 
company,  association  or  corporation  used  in  the  conduct  of  its  busi- 
ness, the  amount  of  paid-up  capital  stock,  the  amount  and  character 
of  the  indebtedness  of  such  company,  association,  or  corporation,  the 
amount  and  cost  of  materials  used  in  making  electricity,  the  quantity 
of  electricity  manufactured,  the  quantity  of  electricity  sold,  the 
amount  received  per  annum  for  each  public  arc  light,  the  amount  re- 
ceived per  kilowatt  for  each  public  incandescent  light,  the  average 
price  received  per  annum  for  each  arc  light  furnished  to  others  than 
the  public,  the  varying  discounts  allowed  to  consumers  using  arc  lights 
during  a  part  of  or  the  entire  night,  the  average  price  charged  per 
kilowatt  for  incandescent  lights  furnished  to  others  than  the  public, 
with  the  varying  discounts,  and  the  price  charged  per  kilowatt  hour 
for  power  or  heat  furnished,  and  the  gross  revenues  from  each  source, 
the  revenues  from  all  other  sources,  the  extensions  and  improvements 
made  in  the  plant  and  works,  the  actual  cost  of  the  same,  the  amounts 
expended  for  labor,  the  amount  set  aside  for  depreciation,  the  amount 
set  aside  for  insurance  and  renewals,  the  amount  paid  out  of  earnings 
for  betterments,  the  amount  paid  for  betterments  from  other  sources, 
the  amount  set  aside  and  paid  in  interest  and  dividends,  the  surplus 
after  paying  the  operating  expenses  and  fixed  charges,  the  statement 
of  the  operating  expenses  to  be  itemized  and  classified  as  is  done  by 
other  public  utility  corporations  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  the 
names  of  the  stockholders  and  the  amount  of  stock  held  in  such  com- 

Eany,  association  or  corporation  by  each  of  them  on  December  thirty - 
rst  next  preceding  the  date  of  such  report.  Any  such  company,  asso- 
ciation or  corporation,  not  later  than  the  fourth  day  of  December  in 
the  year  nineteen  hundered  and  seven,  shall  make  to  Congress  a  sworn 
report  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  this  provision  and 
showing  the  condition  of  its  business  as  near  as  its  present  method  of 
bookkeeping  will  permit  for  the  year  ending  December  thirty-first, 
nineteen  hundred  and  six. 


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70 


Extract  from  act  approved  March  2,  1907,  making  appropriations  to  provide  for 
the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal 
year  ending  June  30,  1908,  and  for  other  purposes. 

For  Washington  Home  for  Incurables,  maintenance,  including  ele- 
vator, four  thousand  dollars:  Provided,  That  grounded  electrical 
circuits  may  be  used  for  lighting  and  power  purposes  at  said  Home. 

Extract  from  act  approved  March  4,  1907,  making  appropriations  for  the  sundry 
civil  expenses  of  the  Government  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1908. 

SEC.  9.  No  appropriation  heretofore  or  hereafter  made  for  the 
construction  or  equipment  of  any  executive  or  municipal  building  in 
the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  expended  for  the  production  of 
electricity  for  light  or  power,  unless,  in  the  judgment  of  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Treasury,  such  necessary  electric  current  for  light  and 
power  can  not  be  obtained  at  a  less  cost. 

[PUBLIC— No.    92.] 

AN  ACT  To  authorize  the  Washington,  Spa  Spring  and  Gretta  Railroad  Com- 
pany, of  Prince  George  County,  to  extend  its  street  railway  into  the  District 
of  Columbia.  Approved  February  18,  1907. 

Be  it  enacted  l)y  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled.  That  the  Washing- 
ton, Spa  Spring  and  Gretta  Railroad  Company,  a  body  corporate 
under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Maryland,  be,  and  it  is  hereby,  author- 
ized to  extend  its  line  of  street  railway  within  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia with  single  and  double  tracks,  equip  and  operate  the  same  for  the 
carrying  of  passengers,  parcels,  milk,  garden  truck,  and  other  small 
freight,  with  the  necessary  switches,  turn-outs,  buildings,  mechanical 
devices,  along  the  following  route:  Beginning  on  the  Bladensburg 
road,  or  Baltimore  and  Washington  turnpike,  at  the  dividing  line 
between  the  District  of  Columbia  and  Prince  George  County,  Mary- 
land, thence  along  said  Bladensburg  road  to  Fifteenth  street  east  and 
H  street  where  xit  intersects  with  Maryland  avenue  and  said  Bladens- 
burg road;  that  the  motive  power  of  said  road  shall  be  electricity, 
operated  by  the  overhead  wire  or  trolley  system,  and  a  return  wire, 
similar  in  capacity,  situation,  and  insulation  to  the  feed  wire,  shall  be 
provided  with  a  double  trolley ;  and  no  dynamo  furnishing  power  to 
the  road  or  any  portion  thereof  shall  have  either  of  its  wires  con- 
nected with  the  earth. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  said  Washington,  Spa  Spring  and  Gretta  Rail- 
road Company  may  acquire,  by  gift,  grant,  or  purchase,  such  real 
estate  on  either  side  of  its  line  as  may  be  necessary  for  depot,  freight 
purposes,  and  car  barns,  and  shall  have  the  right  to  connect  its  line 
with  the  same. 

SEC.  3.  That  all  plans  of  location  and  construction  shall  be  subject 
to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  4.  That  excavations  in  the  highways  shall  be  made  only  under 
permits  from  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  sub- 
ject to  regulations  prescribed  by  them. 

SEC.  5.  That  the  said  railway  and  its  appurtenances  shall  be  con- 
structed in  a  substantial  and  durable  manner,  subject  to  inspection  by 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  All  changes  to  exist- 
ing structures  in  public  space  shall  be  made  at  the  expense  of  the 
company. 

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SEC.  6.  That  the  said  company  slrallvieposit^ucjk  ^ttfrfe/^s  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  require  to  cover  the  cost 
of  inspection  and  the  cost  of  changes  to  public  works  in  the  streets 
caused  by  the  construction  of  said  railway. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  company  shall  keep  the  space  between  its  rails  and 
tracks  and  two  feet  exterior  thereto  in  good  condition,  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  pave- 
ment of  these  spaces  shall  be  at  least  as  good  as  that  of  the  contiguous 
roadway.  The  proper  authorities  shall  have  the  right  to  make 
changes  of  grade  and  other  improvements  which  they  may  deem  nec- 
essary, and  when  said  Bladensburg  road  is  improved  the  company 
shall  bear  the  entire  expense  of  improving  said  spaces  to  correspond 
with  the  remainder  of  the  roadway.  The  requirements  of  this  section 
shall  be  enforceable  under  the  provisions  of  section  five  of  the  Act 
providing  a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the  District  of 
Columbia,  approved  June  eleventh,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy- 
eight, 

SEC.  8.  That  the  cars  shall  be  first  class  and  shall  be  kept  in  good 
condition,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

SEC.  9.  That  the  cars  shall  be  run  as  often  as  public  convenience 
requires,  on  a  time-table  satisfactory  to  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  and  approved  by  them,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  said  railroad  company  to  submit  such  time-table  for  approval 
whenever  required  by  said  Commissioners,  and  said  company  is  re- 
quired to  run  its  cars  in  accordance  with  said  approved  time-table. 

SEC.  10.  That  the  speed  of  the  cars  shall  be  subject  to  the  police 
regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 

SEC.  11.  That  persons  drunk,  disorderly,  contagiously  diseased,  or 
refusing  to  pa}7  the  legal  fare  may  be  ejected  from  the  cars  by  the 
officers  in  charge  thereof. 

SEC.  12.  That,  as  far  as  possible,  articles  left  in  the  cars  shall  be 
cared  for  by  the  company,  to  the  end  that  they  may  be  returned  to  the 
rightful  owner. 

SEC.  13.  That  the  rate  of  fare  which  may  be  charged  for  the  trans- 
portation of  passengers  over  the  line  of  said  company  within  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  shall  not  exceed  five  cents  per  passenger,  and  six 
tickets  shall  be  sold  for  twenty-five  cents,  each  good  for  the  transpor- 
tation of  one  passenger  over  the  whole  or  any  part  of  said  line  in  the 
District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  14.  That  the  company  is  authorized  to  erect  and  maintain  the 
buildings  necessary  to  the  operation  of  this  road,  subject  to  the  build- 
ing regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  company  shall  erect 
and  maintain  passenger  rooms  and  transfer  stations  as  required  by  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  All  passenger  rooms 
and  transfer  stations  shall  be  provided  with  such  conveniences  for  the 
public  as  said  Commissioners  may  direct. 

SEC.  15.  That  the  said  company,  through  its  proper  officers,  shall 
annually,  on  or  before  August  first,  make  return  under  oath  to  the 
board  of  personal-tax  assessors  of  the  District  of  Columbia  of  the 
amount  of  its  gross  receipts  in  the  District  of  Columbia  during  the 
preceding  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  and  shall  pay  to  the  collector  of 
taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same 
manner  as  other  personal  taxes  are  paid,  an  amount  equal  to  four  per 

24757 


centum  per  arftiiUYi' ••  tfceredify  in  lieu  of  other  personal  taxes;  that  the 
real  estate  of  the  said  company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be 
assessed  and  taxed  as  is  other  real  estate  in  said  District. 

SEC.  16.  That  nothing  in  this  Act  shall  prevent  the  District  of 
Columbia  at  any  time,  at  its  option,  from  altering  the  grade  of  the 
street  or  highway  occupied  by  said  railway,  or  from  altering  and 
improving  streets,  avenues,  highways,  and  the  sewerage  thereof ;  and 
the  company  shall  change  its  railway  construction  and  pavements  so 
as  to  conform  to  such  grades  and  improvements  as  may  have  been  or 
may  be  established. 

SEC.  17.  That  said  company  is  authorized  to  construct  and  operate, 
for  its  own  use  only,  telegraph  and  telephone  lines  along  its  railway, 
as  herein  provided  for,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners 
of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  18.  That  the  construction  of  said  extension  on  the  lines  of 
said  railway  company  within  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  com- 
menced within  one  year  of  the  passage  of  this  Act  and  be  completed 
and  cars  running  thereupon  for  passenger  traffic  within  two  years 
from  the  passage  of  this  Act,  in  default  of  wrhich  this  Act  shall  be 
void  and  of  no  effect. 

SEC.  19.  That  all  the  conditions,  requirements,  and  obligations  im- 
posed by  this  Act  shall  be  complied  Avith  by  any  of  the  successors  to 
or  assigns  of  said  company  within  said  District. 

SEC.  20.  That  within  sixty  days  from  the  approval  of  this  Act  the 
company  shall  deposit  one  thousand  dollars  with  the  collector  of 
taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  guarantee  the  construction  of 
this  railroad  within,  the  prescribed  time,  and  if  this  sum  is  not  so 
deposited  this  Act  shall  be  null  and  void.  If  the  sum  is  so  deposited 
and  the  road  is  not  in  operation  as  herein  prescribed,  said  one  thou- 
sand dollars  shall  be  forfeited  to  the  District  of  Columbia  and  this 
Act  shall  be  void. 

SEC.  21.  That  the  construction,  adoption  of  motive  power,  erection 
of  buildings,  regulation  of  schedule,  and  speed  of  running  shall  be  at 
all  times  under  the  supervision  and  control  of  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  22.  That  each  and  every  violation  of  the  requirements  of  this 
Act  or  of  the  regulations  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  made  under  the  authority  thereof  shall  be  punishable  by  a 
fine  of  not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars,  in  the 
discretion  of  the  court,  such  fines  to  be  collectible  in  any  court  of 
competent  jurisdiction  as  other  fines  and  penalties  are  collected  in  the 
District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  23.  That  the  company  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of 
February  in  each  year,  make  a  report  to  each  the  Senate  and  House 
of  Representatives,  as  prescribed  in  section  ten  of  the  Act  of  June 
tenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-six,  entitled  "An  Act  to  extend 
the  routes  of  the  Eckington  and  Soldiers'  Home  Railway  Company 
and  of  the  Belt  Railway  Company  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and 
for  other  purposes." 

SEC.  24.  That  this  Act  shall  take  effect  from  and  after  the  date  of 
its  passage. 

SEC.  25.  That  Congress  reserves  the  right  to  alter,  amend,  or  repeal 
this  Act. 

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